In the wake of this week’s shooting in Maine, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis resisted calls for red flag laws and other gun control measures, stating that he did not think they were appropriate since they infringed on someone’s right to due process.
The Republican contender for president made the comments on Thursday night during an interview with Kaitlan Collins on CNN’s “The Source.”
This week, a mentally ill man opened fire at two locations in Maine, leaving 18 people dead and over a dozen injured.
He stated that in his opinion, red flag laws are not the same as someone who is not mentally capable of possessing a gun.
“I think red flag laws have been abused, because people can just lodge a complaint. Sometimes they’ll take somebody’s firearms. And here’s the thing. It’s not even Second Amendment, but it is a Fifth Amendment due process issue. Can you take someone’s property without having an adjudication? So I think it’s different.” DeSantis said.
Unlike Donald Trump, @RonDeSantis will never support a red flag law as president.
“So it’s safe to say a President DeSantis would not sign any kind of national red flag law?”
DeSantis: “No” pic.twitter.com/b8GM3J6eLw
— DeSantis War Room 🐊 (@DeSantisWarRoom) October 27, 2023
“No, I don’t think that would be appropriate at all,” DeSantis said in response to a question about whether or not he would support red flag laws if elected president.
“I think the mental health issue in our country, part of it is we do need more institutionalization, there are some people who are dangerous to society, a lot of them get put back on the streets, it will require more resources, but I think that that’s appropriate,” DeSantis continued.
According to him, keeping violent offenders behind bars for extended periods of time and not allowing them to return to society is another way to hold them accountable and address the problem.
He said that because his administration has given law enforcement the freedom to carry out their duties, the crime rate in his state is at a 50-year low.
[READ MORE: DeSantis Announces New Plan to Send Weapons to Israel]
