They’re coming whether you want them or not. I propose two solutions that I believe would take care of most abuses while allowing them to function as intended.
The first is to require a bond. If you make a accusation against someone meant to invoke a red flag action, you must provide a bond that you forfeit if the Defendant wins his case at the fourteen day hearing. I would propose $500.00. That amount is high enough that most people wouldn’t want to throw it away just to harass someone, while it isn’t high enough to serve as a serious bar to someone reporting someone they honestly believed to be immediately dangerous.
The second condition is to make the accuser liable for the defendant’s reasonable and necessary attorney’s fees needed to defend himself if he prevails and the Red Flag Order is not granted at the fourteen day hearing.
I think that the realization that a false and malicious claim made for the purpose of harassment could cause you to have to pay five or ten grand out of your pocket in pretty short order would mitigate a lot of potential abuse while still providing an avenue to deal with someone who might actually have some bad issues.
