Involuntary commitment in DeWine gun plan sparks calls for more capacity, planning

A provision of Gov. Mike DeWine’s gun safety plan that would allow 72-hour commitments of people with serious drug and alcohol problems is prompting worries about effectiveness and capacity (Source: “More capacity, planning needed for involuntary commitments in DeWine gun bill, groups say,” Columbus Dispatch, Oct. 8, 2019).

Gov. Mike DeWine’s proposed gun legislation was light on new regulations that limit how people can keep or sell guns. But it greatly expanded the number of people who can be deprived of their freedom for up to 72 hours because of serious drug or alcohol problems.

A spokesman for the Ohio Hospital Association said the facilities’ emergency departments should have the capacity for such commitments. But the group that represents Ohio’s 88 county drug and mental health agencies says those resources are already strained. And, the group’s leader said, state officials have to plan for care well beyond 72 hours if they want to make a meaningful impact on the lives of those who might be committed.

In presenting his plan, DeWine said he would only propose measures he thought would be effective in reducing gun violence and that he believed the legislature would pass. In doing so, he dropped universal background checks for all gun sales and a “red flag” provision, which would allow a judge to order the temporary seizure of a person’s weapons if the person is judged to be a danger.