Cases Soared in New York, But Constitutionality Questioned

The use of the red flag law in New York has surged over the past year to allow judges to confiscate weapons from people they deem dangerous.

The rise in cases, according to prosecutors and elected officials, has helped quell gun violence in New York after an alarming spike during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The future of the law remains uncertain.

Two New York State Supreme Court judges — Thomas Moran in Monroe County and Craig Stephen Brown in Orange County — ruled in separate red flag cases this year that the law is unconstitutional because it does not provide due process for the plaintiffs.