[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 90 (Wednesday, May 24, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3147-S3148]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. FEINSTEIN (for herself, Mrs. Gillibrand, Mr. Markey, and 
        Mr. Blumenthal):
  S. 1212. A bill to provide family members of an individual who they 
fear is a danger to himself, herself, or others, and law enforcement, 
with new tools to prevent gun violence; to the Committee on the 
Judiciary.
  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I rise to introduce the Gun Violence 
Prevention Order Act of 2017: At this time, I would also like to thank 
Senators Blumenthal, Gillibrand, and Markey for cosponsoring this 
legislation. Their support is sincerely appreciated.
  Yesterday marked the 3rd anniversary of the horrific shooting that 
outraged the community of Isla Vista, California and the Nation. During 
this attack, the City of Isla Vista was struck by tragedy when 22-year-
old Elliot Rodger went on a shooting rampage after fatally stabbing his 
two roommates and a friend. Armed with a Glock 34 handgun and two SIG 
Sauer P226 handguns, the assailant drove through the streets of Isla 
Vista, shooting and killing 3 young students and injuring 14 others 
near the University of California, Santa Barbara campus before taking 
his own life. The Isla Vista community was in shock, and we as a nation 
struggled to comprehend how this tragedy could have been prevented.
  As more facts emerged about the assailant, we learned that he had a 
history of mental health concerns and violent behavior. He had been 
prescribed medications used to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder 
and at age 18 Rodgers had begun to refuse the mental health treatment 
he had been receiving. Local deputies had also encountered him several 
times through conflicts and fights he had with friends and roommates. 
And less than a month before his deadly rampage, a concerned friend had 
called a county mental health staff member, and, after speaking with 
the assailant's mother, law enforcement conducted a welfare check at 
Rodger's apartment. At that point, Rodger's murderous plot was well 
underway, and had the police searched his room, they would have found a 
stockpile of guns and ammunition along with papers detailing his plans 
to kill. This individual should have never been able to obtain a 
firearm--and the bill I am introducing today would enable law 
enforcement and family members to intervene and prevent attackers like 
this assailant from carrying out atrocious acts of gun violence in the 
future.
  Over 30,000 people die each year from gun violence, and on average, 7 
children and teens are killed by guns every day. We know that families 
and friends are in the best position to recognize early signs of 
trouble before tragedy occurs. However, family members and law 
enforcement officials commonly have no legal means of taking preventive 
steps to stop a troubled individual from committing an act of gun 
violence before it occurs. To solve this problem, the State of 
California enacted a law in the aftermath of the Isla Vista attack that 
enables family members or law enforcement officers to ask a court for a 
gun violence prevention order.
  Modeled on California's existing laws on domestic violence, when a 
judge believes there is sufficient evidence that an individual is a 
danger to themselves or others, the gun violence prevention order 
temporarily prohibits an individual from purchasing firearms or 
ammunition. And under a higher burden of proof, a court can also issue 
a warrant to remove any firearms or ammunition already in the 
individual's possession. Based on this California law and other State 
laws, the Gun Violence Prevention Order Act of 2017 would create a new 
law enforcement grant under the Community-Oriented Policing Services 
Program at the Department of Justice and incentivize States to take 
intervening measures to prevent gun violence. Specifically, this 
legislation would ensure that families and others can seek a gun 
violence prevention order from a court to temporarily stop someone 
close to them who poses a threat to themselves or others from 
purchasing a firearm. This legislation also ensures that a court can 
issue a gun violence prevention warrant requiring law enforcement to 
take temporary possession of firearms that have already been purchased 
if the court determines that the individual poses a threat. Because 
criminal background checks are critical to preventing gun crimes, this 
legislation also requires the Department of Justice and comparable 
state law enforcement agencies to keep their background check databases 
up to date and requires courts to notify these agencies when a gun 
violence prevention order is issued.
  Importantly, this legislation also protects due process rights by 
providing written notice and multiple opportunities for the court to 
make independent determinations on the matter.
  Additionally, the Department of Justice and State law enforcement 
agencies would be required to protect the affected individual's 
confidentiality. Finally, I would like to say a few words about the 
victims and survivors of the Isla Vista attack and what this 
legislation means to their community. Many of the victims and survivors 
of this attack were students and young adults. They had their whole 
lives ahead of them. As communities across California and our Nation 
mark the third anniversary of this terrible tragedy, let us remember 
the lives of Weihan Wang, Cheng Yuan Hong, George Chen, Veronika Weiss, 
Katherine Cooper, and Christopher Michaels-Martinez. The

[[Page S3148]]

families of these victims will never be the same again, and I will 
never forget hearing their stories in the aftermath of this attack. As 
a mother and grandmother, I cannot imagine the pain they have gone 
through. As the elected leaders of this body, we must never forget what 
happened in Isla Vista and take steps to keep our communities safe from 
the gun violence that continues to endanger them. We have seen the 
costs of inaction, and the Gun Violence Prevention Order Act of 2017 is 
a step we can take to protect communities across America and ensure 
that other communities do not experience the pain that Isla Vista went 
through. I hope my colleagues will join me in remembering the victims 
of this attack and supporting this legislation.
                                 ______