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Colorado officials say if red flag laws were enacted for the Club Q shooter they'd be sealed by the court
November 21, 2022 6:53PM ET
During a Monday press conference about a mass shooting at a Colorado Springs LGBTQ+ club, reporters asked officials about the shooter, who has a history of making dangerous threats. The previous charges has prompted law enforcement experts to ask why the police didn't enact the red flag laws in place in Colorado that would have removed the guns from the shooter.
Answering questions from reporters, District Attorney Michael Allen implied that there might be more information about the shooter and enacting red flag laws but they could be sealed by the court
"Colorado has very restrictive sealing laws," he said. "What that means is, if a case is filed in a courtroom in the state of Colorado and is dismissed for any reason, whether that is because the prosecution dismisses it or the court dismisses it, it is automatically sealed. That is a change in the law that occurred back in 2019. So only three years ago, that same statute requires us to give specific answers about cases that may or may not be under a sealed order that I just gave you that requires us to say in response to questions about it, that no such record exists. So, when you ask questions about specific prior incidences, that will be our specific answer. But I wanted to give you a reason why that's the answer that we're giving. I acknowledge that it is very unsatisfying at this point. Hopefully, at some point in the near future, we can share but that's the answer we can give you, and it's going to be the same for everybody up here."
He explained that the purpose is the protect anyone that is accused of a crime can still get a fair trial and be considered innocent until proven guilty.
The mayor agreed that if there was evidence to enact the red flag laws they should be used to protect the community.
See the press conference below or at the link here:
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