Restrictions on firearm possession.

Existing law authorizes a court to issue a gun violence restraining order to prohibit a person from purchasing or possessing a firearm or ammunition for a period of one to 5 years, subject to renewal for additional one- to 5-year periods, if the subject of the petition poses a significant danger of self-harm or harm to another in the near future by having a firearm and the order is necessary to prevent personal injury to the subject of the petition or another. Existing law also allows a gun violence restraining order to be issued on an ex parte basis for up to 21 days. Existing law allows a petition for these gun violence restraining orders to be made by a law enforcement officer, or an immediate family member, employer, coworker, or teacher, as specified, of the subject of the petition. This bill would additionally authorize a district attorney to request that the court issue a temporary emergency gun violence restraining order. The bill would make other conforming changes. Existing law prohibits a person from possessing a firearm or other deadly weapon if the person is admitted to a mental health facility and the mental health professional who is treating the person determines that the person is a danger to themself or others and requires the professional to report to a local law enforcement agency the identity of the person, as specified. Existing law authorizes a law enforcement agency to temporarily confiscate any firearm or other deadly weapon that the person possesses while the person is admitted, as specified. Existing law requires the confiscating law enforcement agency to initiate a petition in the superior court within 30 days of the person being released from the facility for a hearing to determine whether the return of the firearm or other deadly weapon would be likely to result in endangering the person or others, as specified. This bill would additionally allow a mental health practitioner to report the identity of a person prohibited from possessing a firearm or other deadly weapon to a district attorney and would additionally authorize a district attorney to file the petition to determine if the person should continue to be prohibited from possessing a firearm or other deadly weapon. The bill would make other conforming changes.