Vice President Mike Pence is hopping on the red flag gun confiscation bandwagon.
According to a report from Fox 59, Pence believes Indiana’s red flag law could serve as a model for the rest of the nation to follow.
On Wednesday, the VP held a roundtable discussion over red flag laws with several Indiana law enforcement officials. Pence claims that this discussion is part of a larger conversation the Trump administration is participating in order to prevent mass shootings like the ones in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio.
“I’m here to listen and to carry back Indiana’s experience into our discussions at the White House,” Pence stated.
Pence praised Indiana’s red flag laws for preventing incidents of gun violence in cases involving mental health issues and suicide.
“While we will always defend the rights of Americans to keep and bear arms, we don’t want people who are a danger to themselves or others to have access to firearms,” Pence declared.
Indiana’s red flag law was passed after an Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officer was killed in 2004.
In Indianapolis, red flag laws have been invoked more than 700 times, giving police the authority to confiscate firearms from an individual who is suspected to pose a threat to themselves or others.
Although Pence claimed that President Donald Trump is examining red flag laws as a means of preventing mass shootings, he has not indicated any concrete steps towards pursuing a national policy.
“As we look at these proposals in congress, they’re designed to encourage states to adopt these laws, because the ability to process these warrants, to give individuals the due process that’s essential to protect the constitutional rights of every American, best happen in state and local jurisdictions,” Pence said.
Currently, 17 states have adopted red flag laws.
Many gun rights advocates fear that these kinds of laws pose a major threat to basic civil liberties such as due process.