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Sheriff Steve Weams of Weld County, Colorado recently bragged he would rather go to jail than enforce a democratically-enacted Extreme Risk Protection Order law. An ERPO bill was recently passed by the Colorado Senate and seems to have the votes necessary to pass the state House. The bill was originally introduced following the 2017 death of Douglas County sheriff’s deputy Zack Parrish, who was shot and killed by a man with an arsenal of firearms and a history of irrational behavior.
Sheriff Reams personally believes the ERPO bill violates the second, fourth, fifth, sixth, eighth and fourteenth amendments, despite the state attorney general’s complete confidence in the constitutionality of the legislation. Echoing gun nut rhetoric, Reams opined the ERPO law would be ineffective because a gun is just one “tool” a person can use to harm others, like a knife or car.
Reams could be held in contempt of court and jailed for not enforcing court orders issued under a new ERPO law in Colorado. Fourteen states across the country have already passed similar laws allowing family members and/or law enforcement to temporarily seize firearms from individuals in crisis because of mental illness, substance abuse, domestic violence, etc.
Please contact Sheriff Steve Reams through one of the channels below and give him the following message, personalized to your liking:
Sheriff Reams, I’ve found your comments about the Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) bill in the Colorado state legislature to be very aggravating. Sheriff, you are paid by the taxpayers of Weld County to enforce the laws on the books. We have courts to determine the constitutionality of laws. That’s not your job. It never was. Why don’t you show some class and support the Douglas County sheriff and this ERPO measure in memory of deputy Zack Parrish? This is NOT an extreme piece of legislation and you know it. It allows only for the temporary seizure of firearms during cases when individuals are in crisis because of mental illness, domestic violence, substance abuse, etc. It allows the best people possible to file petitions in these cases (because they know would-be the shooters best): family members and law enforcement. And it allows for due process for gun owners in all cases. I’ll tell you right now…if you refuse to enforce an ERPO law, I will be compiling information about gun violence cases in this county and notifying surviving families of gun violence victims and prosecutors to confirm your office has properly enforced all applicable gun laws. The safety of my family and community means everything to me. Stop playing these ridiculous games or voters will replace you with someone whose focus is on saving lives and keeping the peace.
Weld County Sheriff Steve Reams
Phone: (970) 356-4015
Email: jsherman@weldgov.com and mturner@co.weld.co.us
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/weldcountysheriff/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/weldsheriff
Once you’ve contacted sheriff Reams, fill out the three fields below and click the orange banner to report taking action!