Michigan’s safe gun storage and red flag laws adopted largely in response to mass shootings at Oxford High School and Michigan State University have been in effect for two years now.
One law requires guns to be unloaded and locked if they are in a place where minors might be present. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services says it has distributed 110,600 free gun locks in the past two years as part of the safe storage law.
“No one should have to fear gun violence at home, school, church, work or as they go about their daily lives,” said Governor Gretchen Whitmer in a statement released Friday by her office. “I was proud to sign the secure storage law, one of several commonsense gun safety measures to keep Michiganders safe. By keeping guns properly stored, ensuring Michigan families know the proper way to store their firearms and distributing free gun locks, we can prevent misuse and avoid senseless tragedies.”
Another law allows judges to issue extreme risk protection orders to temporarily seize guns from people deemed a risk to themselves or others.
“We are seeing cases where there was a threat, law enforcement removed firearms, and the threat isn’t there anymore,” said April Zeoli, director of the Institute for Firearm Injury Prevention at the University of Michigan.
A report issued last year by the State Court Administrator Office said judges approved 287 extreme risk protection orders in 2024 and denied 84 requests during that period. The 2025 annual extreme risk protection order report is due to be released soon.
Zeoli said she would like to see mandatory training for law enforcement on how to use the “red flag” law.
“So that when law enforcement officers encounter someone who may be a risk to themselves or others, they know exactly what to do – who to call, how to write the report, what evidence is needed,” she told Michigan Public Radio. She added another improvement would be giving law enforcement clear authority to remove guns from people who are served with personal protection orders – which are different from extreme risk orders under the “red flag” law -- in domestic violence cases.
“And without that ability to knock on someone’s door and say I’m here to remove your firearms under this PPO, they just don’t do it,” she said.
