CO Sheriff Goes Off After His State Passes Unconstitutional Gun Confiscation Law

Colorado’s state legislature recently passed a controversial gun law, which essentially allows a person to petition a judge to take someone’s firearms away if they’re deemed to be a risk to themselves or others. Critics say this law goes way too far. Why? Because it essentially allows law enforcement to forcibly take someone’s weapons before they even have the chance to appear in court. Additionally, how can you be sure that the person who’s making the allegations has pure motives?

The bill allows a judge to order a person’s guns to be seized before the person has a chance to appear in court. The bill does require a second hearing with the gun owner present to be held within 14 days, where the owner could make a case to keep the weapons — but if the owner is unsuccessful, a judge could order the guns seized for as long as a year.

Kopel said it would be difficult to prevent a nightmare scenario in which someone misuses the law to take guns away from a person they intend to target violently.

The burden of proof is low — “preponderance of the evidence,” which is the same standard used in civil cases, and a much lower bar than the criminal standard, “beyond a reasonable doubt.”

One cop is making his stance crystal clear: Weld County Sheriff Steven Reams says he won’t enforce something he sees as innately unconstitutional.

“It has so many constitutional questions I can’t go forward in good faith and carry out a law that I feel puts constituents’ constitutional rights at risk,” he explained.

Reams, a Republican, is not alone. Half of Colorado’s 64 counties have declared themselves Second Amendment sanctuaries where the measure would not be enforced.

“They could sentence me to my own jail,” Reams said, “fine me, or hold a contempt hearing to further this argument along, and honestly I think any of those possibilities are out there.”

The law wouldn’t be enforceable until 2020, so there’s still time to fight it. However, Reams is willing to put everything on the line.

“It’s a matter of doing what’s right,” he said.