Nassau Legislator Proposes Bill To Take Guns From Psych Patients

NASSAU COUNTY, NY — Nassau County Legislator Joshua Lafazan is proposing legislation that would allow county police to take guns away from people under psychiatric evaluation.

The "Scott J. Beigel Gun Violence Prevention" bill is named after a Long Island resident who was killed at the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Dougles High School in Parkland, Florida four years ago today. Beigel was a geography teacher at the Florida school, and died protecting students from the shooter.

“After the tragedy in Parkland four years ago today — which senselessly took the life of Long Island’s own Scott Biegel and 16 others — we vowed collectively to do everything in our power to stop it from happening again,” said Lafazan. “By instilling common sense measures such as this, we are placing the safety of Nassau County residents above all and preventing future tragedies from happening.”

According to Lafazan, the bill would allow police officers to check the identity and address of people taken by officers for involuntary psychiatric evaluation against the police and sheriffs' pistol license registries. The county would then take action to keep guns away from those people.

Lafazan, a Democrat, is running for Congress to replace Rep. Tom Suozzi, who is running for governor.

“On a day when the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre weighs especially heavily upon all of our hearts, I am truly hopeful that the Legislature will come together and enact this proposal as part of a multi-pronged strategy for preventing senseless gun tragedies here in Nassau County,” said Legislator Debra Mulé, a fellow Democrat, who joined Lafazan to announce the bill.