Senator Collins Proposes Reform as Maine Continues to Grieve 18 Lives Lost in Lewiston Mass Shooting

Washington, D.C. – As the State of Maine continues to grieve the lives lost in Lewiston on October 25, 2023, U.S. Senator Susan Collins introduced the Armed Forces Crisis Intervention Notification Act to require U.S. military services to use state crisis intervention laws when a service member poses a serious threat to him or herself or to others.  Senator Angus King is an original cosponsor. 

Immediately following the Lewiston shooting, Senators Collins and King called for the Army Inspector General to conduct an independent review to more fully understand what happened and what can be done at the local, county, state, and federal levels to help prevent future tragedies.

That review, as well as the investigations by the Army Reserve and the Independent Commission established by Maine Governor Janet Mills, substantiated that there were numerous missed opportunities to potentially separate the shooter, Sergeant First Class Robert Card, from his firearms while he received mental health treatment.  In many instances, there was a clear lack of effective communication and coordination between the military and civilian law enforcement.  

Informed by these findings, this legislation would require U.S. military services to utilize state crisis intervention programs–like Maine’s Yellow Flag Law–and to fully participate in judicial proceedings authorized by such laws, while protecting the Second Amendment and due process rights of service members. 

“I authored the Armed Forces Crisis Intervention Notification Act in response to the October 25, 2023, tragedy in Lewiston, Maine.  On that day, 18 Mainers were killed and 13 others were injured during the worst mass shooting in Maine history,” said Senator Collins.  “While the shooter was responsible for his horrific actions, multiple independent investigations revealed that there were numerous missed opportunities to potentially intervene and prevent this tragedy. This bill would facilitate effective communication and coordination between state agencies and military service branches, thereby helping to keep our communities safe and ensuring that service members in crisis get the assistance they need, without infringing upon the rights of law-abiding gun owners.”

“After shoppers were killed in Buffalo, New York, and schoolchildren and teachers were murdered in Uvalde, Texas, we came together to pass the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act,” Senator Collins continued.  “I was honored to be a part of that effort, which I believe has saved many lives.  I co-authored provisions in that bill to help take dangerous criminals off the streets—and that is exactly what is happening.  The Lewiston tragedy requires legislation and other changes to eliminate the communication gaps that the investigations have revealed.  We have a chance to help service members in crisis.  We have a chance to help protect our neighbors and families.  We have a chance to save lives.”

“We cannot bring back our friends and family members we lost last October, but we can take steps to fix the cracks in the system that led to the tragedy,” said Senator King. “Whether through the Blast Overpressure Safety Act, or starting brain screening of service members on day one, or investments in additional mental health services to deliver needed care to those still processing unseen scars, this public safety threat is a complex problem that requires a wide range of approaches. While making sure that this bill has guardrails to protect the 2^nd Amendment, this legislation strengthens the information sharing practices that can literally be the difference between life and death.”

Key Provision of the Armed Forces Crisis Intervention Notification Act Include:

• Directing the Armed Forces to Fully Utilize State Crisis Intervention Programs.

• This bill directs the Armed Forces to fully utilize state crisis intervention programs in certain circumstances, namely when a service member is determined to be unfit to possess military firearms due to the member making a serious, credible threat of violence or when a service member has been involuntarily committed to a mental hospital. “Fully utilize” is defined to mean (1) taking action available to third parties under a state crisis intervention program and (2) providing relevant material facts to appropriate law enforcement or judicial personnel.  

• Directing the Armed Forces to Fully Participate in Judicial Proceedings.

• This bill facilitates information sharing by directing the Armed Forces to produce, upon request, relevant evidence in judicial proceedings authorized as part of a state crisis intervention program.

• Protecting the Ability of States to Design Crisis Intervention Programs.

• This bill preserves the ability of states to craft crisis intervention programs that work best for them.  The Armed Forces would simply operate within each state’s framework, provided the state programs adhere to the due process and Second Amendment protections detailed for such programs in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.  The bill does not require states to adopt, modify, or expand any crisis intervention programs, nor does it create a federal crisis intervention program.

• Protecting the Due Process and Second Amendment Rights of Service Members.

• As noted, this bill directs the Armed Forces to utilize state crisis intervention programs that include the due process and Second Amendment protections already specified by Congress in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.   

• This bill directs the Armed Forces to fully participate in judicial proceedings authorized as part of state crisis intervention, including proceedings initiated by a current or former service member to modify or terminate a protection order to regain possession of his or her firearms when the military has evidence that may be helpful to his or her case.

• This bill does not affect the military’s existing authority to disarm service members of their service weapons in a broad range of situations that are unrelated to a serious, credible threat of violence or involuntary commitment to a mental hospital, when it might not make sense to trigger a state crisis intervention program.

A one-pager on this legislation is available here.

The complete text of this legislation is available here.

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