A new Maryland law that allows courts to temporarily restrict firearms access for people at risk to themselves or others resulted in more than 300 protective orders, five of which were related to schools, the sheriff of the state’s most populous county said last week.
Montgomery County Sheriff Darren Popkin told a panel of state lawmakers that 302 orders were sought under the state’s “red flag” law in the first three months since the law took effect Oct. 1. He said five of them related to schools, and four of those five “were significant threats.”
Maryland was one of eight states that passed “red flag” legislation last year in the aftermath of the Parkland, Fla., shooting that killed 17 in February. Five states already had similar laws.
