Justice Reform and Safe Communities

An ERPO is an Extreme Risk Protection Order-- also sometimes known as a Red Flag law. These laws allow for a judge to temporarily prevent someone from accessing guns if there is evidence that they are a danger to themselves or others. ERPOs are used in situations such as a loved one considering suicide, or law enforcement noticing signs of violent acts. An example of a situation that could have been remedied by an ERPO is the Parkland school shooting in 2018. The mass shooter was repeatedly reported to law enforcement because of threatening behavior. ERPOs allow families and law enforcement to be proactive and prevent deaths. 

HB167 is an extremely common sense piece of legislation.  It would require that a gunowner lock their gun in an unattended vehicle. Many of the guns used in crimes are stolen, and 1/3 of guns stolen are stolen from cars. This bill would not only prevent crime, it would also protect gunowners from a potential connection to a crime.  

North Carolina’s prisons are chronically understaffed and costly to maintain. Additionally, imprisonment has proven to be ineffective at deterring future crime. HB589 would allow inmates deemed not a danger to the community to petition for sentence reduction after serving 10 years in prison or, if the sentence is less than 10 years, at least 50% of the imposed sentence. 

Now, more than ever, our schools need to be prepared for natural disasters. HB665 would create a disaster preparedness fund with the purpose of funding schools in high risk areas to improve or replace existing school structures to lessen future damage.

Gun violence is a pressing public health issue across the country and in the state of North Carolina—according to Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Gun Violence Solutions, the overall gun death rate in NC has increased 39% over the past decade. Most North Carolinians support common sense gun legislation. HB732 aims to reduce gun violence through a number of such measures, including introduction of extreme risk protection orders (ERPOs), restrictions on the possession of untraceable firearms also known as “ghost guns,” and regulations on the sale of large-capacity ammunition magazines.

HB982 would require speed cameras be placed in construction zones to keep our construction workers safe. Any funds raised from tickets given in these zones would be used to add funds to our public school system.