Page A3 of the March 29 edition of this newspaper offered some glimpses into our crazy world. Kim Jong Un announcing his desire to make more nuclear material for bombs; Russia convicting the father of a teen who drew an anti-war picture, and more reverberations from the Statue of David “pornography” dust-up.
But the perhaps most disturbing article was about the Nashville school shooting: “If police had been told that (Audrey) Hale (the shooter) was suicidal or homicidal, ‘then we would have tried to get those weapons,’ (Police Chief John) Drake said. ‘But as it stands, we had absolutely no idea who this person was or if (Hale) even existed.’ Tennessee does not currently have a ‘red flag’ law, which lets police step in and take firearms away from people who threaten to kill.”
So, if I read this correctly, the Nashville Police Department could not have legally confiscated Hale’s weapons even if it had known Hale was homicidal or suicidal. Presumably, therefore, they would have had to monitor Hale’s movements, follow Hale to the school and wait for the shooting to start before arresting or “neutralizing” Hale. If the Nashville PD had confiscated the weapons before the shooting started, they would most likely be on the losing end of a massive Second Amendment lawsuit. Madness.
Peter Chandler
Topsham
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