FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Three Kentucky lawmakers are crafting legislation that would allow family members and others to petition authorities to keep guns away from people deemed a threat.
The lawmakers say the goal is to protect Kentuckians from gun violence while protecting due-process rights. Promoting the proposal on Thursday were Republican Sens. Julie Raque Adams and Paul Hornback and Democratic Sen. Morgan McGarvey.
They say work has been underway on the proposal for more than a year.
"We believe that properly crafted, these bills can help Kentuckians. we are meeting with experts from across the country and around the state." McGarvey said. "We are convening panels, we're getting together with judges and law enforcement to make sure that we have a bill that can not only pass but that can help people."
Their press conference comes days after mass shootings in Texas and Ohio left 31 people dead. They're still working on a version that will be ready in time for next year's legislative session.
At least 17 states have "red flag" laws to take guns away from people believed to be dangers to themselves or others.
Raque Adams said she wants the legislation to have a strong due process factor.
"It's about time that we start to have this conversation and I think that we can have this conversation and really have a strong due process component attached to this bill so that everyone feels protected," Raque Adams said.