Tennessee Red Flag Gun Law Scheduled For House Floor Vote And Senate Committee Consideration
Image Credit: Canva
The Tennessee Conservative [By Adelia Kirchner] –
A red flag gun bill that would expand mandatory reporting laws is scheduled to be heard in the Senate Health and Welfare Committee and voted on in the Tennessee House of Representatives this week.
HB1625/SB1673, sponsored by Rep. Jason Zachary (R-Knoxville-District 14) in the House and Sen. Becky Massey (R-Knoxville-District 6) in the Senate, would expand current state law, requiring mental health professionals to report their patient if they determine that patient to have communicated an intent “for actual threat of bodily harm.”
The bill “requires the professional or behavior analyst to report such threat” and “provides immunity from civil, criminal, and regulatory liability for a professional or analyst who takes reasonable action to warn or protect identified victims or groups and to report such threat.”
Current law reads that mental health professionals have “a duty to predict, warn or take precautions to provide protection,” but only under specific circumstances (i.e. a patient has communicated “an actual threat of bodily harm against a clearly identified victim” and the professional has determined that the patient has the “apparent ability to commit such an act and is likely to carry out the threat”).
HB1625/SB1673 would change current law by expanding reportable threats to include those made towards a general group of people instead of just one “clearly identified victim” (i.e. students of a particular school), and by allowing mental health professionals to report a patient if that patient has the “apparent ability to commit such an act.”
The language “and is likely to carry out the threat” would be removed by this legislation.
Some critics have voiced concern about providing civil, criminal, and regulatory immunity for mental health professionals because of the subjective way in which a mental health professional may perceive something to be a threat.
Several questions have also been raised regarding privacy laws and where reported information will be stored, how it will be used, as well as who will have access to it.
Back in August 2023, during Tennessee’s special session, HB1625 was passed on the House floor. However, the Senate refused to act on the bill at that time and the bill had to be reintroduced this year.
In late January the legislation was passed by the House Health Subcommittee and was passed out of the full House Health Committee earlier this month.
A vote on HB1625 is scheduled to take place on the House floor on Thursday, February 22nd, 2024.
To voice your support or opposition to this legislation as summarized above, use the Find My Legislator tool and contact your district’s representative prior to the House vote.
The corresponding Senate bill, SB1673, is also scheduled to be heard in the Senate Health and Welfare Committee this Wednesday, February 21st, 2024.
To voice your support or opposition to this legislation as summarized above, use the information below to contact the committee members prior to their scheduled meeting.
Rusty Crowe (R-Chair) – sen.rusty.crowe@capitol.tn.gov – (615) 741-2468
Ferrell Haile (R-Vice-Chair) – sen.ferrell.haile@capitol.tn.gov – (615) 741-1999
Shane Reeves (R-2nd Vice Chair) – sen.shane.reeves@capitol.tn.gov – (615) 741-1066
Joey Hensley (R) – sen.joey.hensley@capitol.tn.gov – (615) 741-3100
Ed Jackson (R) – sen.ed.jackson@capitol.tn.gov – (615) 741-1810
Becky Massey (R) – sen.becky.massey@capitol.tn.gov – (615) 741-1648
Art Swann (R) – sen.art.swann@capitol.tn.gov – (615) 741-0981
Bo Watson (R) – sen.bo.watson@capitol.tn.gov – (615) 741-3227
Jeff Yarbro (D) – sen.jeff.yarbro@capitol.tn.gov – (615) 741-3291
About the Author: Adelia Kirchner is a Tennessee resident and reporter for the Tennessee Conservative. Currently the host of Subtle Rampage Podcast, she has also worked for the South Dakota State Legislature and interned for Senator Bill Hagerty’s Office in Nashville, Tennessee.
You can reach Adelia at adelia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
New York State has a mental-health law on the books that allows the State Office of Mental Health to report a person, even one who has voluntarily checked himself or herself into a hospital for a mental-health crisis, to the FBI and have that person included in the NICS database. Without getting permission from a judge in a court of competent jurisdiction before notifying the FBI or seizing someone’s firearms , this kind of administrative maneuver violates someone’s Second, Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights; even an ex-parte court order infringes on these rights in my opinion. Additionally, red-flag laws will cause people not seek treatment if they have a mental disorder for fear of losing their Second Amendment rights to defend themselves with a gun. Finally if someone wants to get a firearm badly enough then they’ll get one; just ask any felon who has one.
“The stark reality is: If you don’t like the freedom that you have in Tennessee, then you got 49 other states that you can pack your stuff up and move to.” – Rep. Jason Zachary
Well this guy has been known to say one thing and not follow through.
It appears that those of us who are refugees from states controlled by the despicable Democrat Party are more Conservative and thus more respectful of our rights under the US Constitution than native Tennesseans who claim to be Republicans like Mr. Zachary.
No Little Jimmy, neither you nor the the State get to tell me what my inalienable rights are so you’re the one who can pack up and move to another state like NY or CA where people like you think that “rights” are privileges to be handed out by the state like candy.
Don’t let the door hit you in the rear-end on the way out.
That’s not my quote look closely it’s the sponsor of the bill’s quote right after she finished selling out everyone in Tennessee during the special session on medical freedoms two years ago. He is a poster child of Snollygoster!!! He will still deny the fact outright till today and tell you he helped pass the most comprehensive medical reform bill. He is the Epitome of a Tennessee establishment RINO leadership stooge!!
This sounds like the begining to what HITLER did. That’s called control Mr. Zachary. If you don’t like what us conservative like you have 49 other states that you can move too. Enjoy your move.
Any infringement on our 2nd Amendment is a violation of the federal and state Constitution and WE THE PEOPLE of TN will NULLIFY. Any law that violates the Constitution is not a law folks. Time to learn your rights. Join us at TN Citizens for State Sovereignty. tncss.substack.com and our website is tncss.weebly.com We are supporting HB2795/SB2775 Restoring State Sovereignty Through Nullification Act and we need all TN to step up and join us in this fight. Believe it or not we have legislators that do not want to protect our state sovereignty against the overreach of the federal and state government. They actually have a fake bill SB2058 to make it look like they passed a sovereignty bill when all they are doing is establishing a committee that will fade away like every committee they create for the puspose of deceiving people. The sponsor of SB2058 does not believe in Nullification and believes the court is the final arbiter of the Constitution which is NOT true and only shows how ignorant many of our legislators are when it comes to our Constitution and the power our founders gave to the states and the people of the states.
As is the norm, everything in the proposed addition to the existing law protects everyone except the person who might be wrongly accused. That person must then spend his own money to attempt to get justice, a thing which is getting in shorter and shorter supply in Tn. A really good example is the added powers added to the Child Services Division. They have consistently failed to properly execute their duty, families have been destroyed, financially ruined by overzealous agents. While they have done this, children are abused, killed and otherwise mistreated and, only after the fact is something done. A wrongly accused family that loses their children have little recourse and the one guilty of the overreach still have jobs. What do you thing will happen with this mess.
My email;
NO!!
HIGH abuse potential!!
Let’s not forget that it was “mental health professionals” who told Audrey Hale that she was really a man and that all her problems eminated from that.
If a “mental health professional” told me that I was actually the opposite sex, it would be the “mental health professional ” who was mental and ought to be reported for malpractice if not incitement to mass murder, which was what happened with Audrey Hale i.e., a woman who started out maybe a few bricks shy of a full load until “mental health professionals” tipped the whole load, and probably got insurance to pay for it.
Never mind, because Republicans lost this battle long ago with “same sex” marriage. They heard it often enough and loud enough and, darn those Nazis, but suddenly, it all became true, just like Dr. Goebells said.
Smart as a tack in your seat or a nail in your tire.
This would be great if they indicted Congress for threatening an entire group of people, like just about everybody in the entire world from Hamas to Dutch Farmers, not to mention half the states reblling against the other half which refuse to enforce immigration laws who then blame the other, other half for all the immigrants.
And then, we have Natenyahu and all our dual citizens who have expressly said they intend to wipe out every single Palestinians but,,,wait for it,,,both houses of congress have passed bills to ease the financial burden of mass murder!
You can’t make it up! Listen Bill Maher. He just isn’t this funny.
What is the number one mental health problem in the United States? CONGRESS!
No kidding, congress and Vladimir Putin are tied at %21-22 approval although I’ll bet Vlad pulled way ahead after Tucker Carlson’s interview.
Russia banned pervert propaganda, BTW.
You really have to wonder if we woouldn’t be better off as a Russian governorate or something.
The BRICS members are adamant on not interfering with each others domestic affairs which would leave us better off than we are now, just paying taxes and keeping noses clean for a change i.e. not up everyone else’s butt.
YOU are so right we do not need any more FALCE FLAG LAWS, we have a LAWS NOW THAT should not be on the books. EVERY ANTI GUN LAW THEY HAVE PAST does not follow our CONSTITUTION.
Once you sit at the table with gun grabbers for discussion you have already lost the battle !! and we have been losing ground for the better party of the century all due to Republicans.
What happens if this Mental specialist takes something out of context, Lies or has a agenda??? Too many Loopholes for Abuse while being immune from being Sued!! Too many variables. No to Red Flag !!