Maine’s gun laws have come under scrutiny after a gunman opened fire at a bowling alley and bar Wednesday night, killing at least 18 people and wounding 60 more.
Critics fault the Pine Tree State for its lax regulation of firearms. Maine does not require background checks for all gun purchases.
Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun violence prevention organization, said the state laws effectively make it easier “for prohibited buyers to access guns, no questions asked.”
Robert Card, the person of interest in the Lewiston rampage, legally purchased a sniper rifle with .308-caliber bullets — the weapons believed to have been used in the attack — earlier this year, police said.
The revelations came as it was reported that Card, an Army reservist firearms instructor, had allegedly been under psychiatric care in the months before the massacre.
Without the need for a background check, the seller of the rifle would not have been notified of Card’s mental health history.
Police released an image of the suspect Wednesday at a bowling alley in Lewiston, Maine.
Follow the Post’s coverage of the mass shooting in Maine
Maine also does not have extreme risk or “red flag” laws, which allow families or police to ask the court to temporarily prevent a person from purchasing a gun on the grounds that it poses a risk to themselves and others.
Card’s family declined to comment on whether or not they attempted to restrict his access to firearms at the time he was committed for erratic behavior and allegedly “hearing voices” in his head.
Maine has not banned high-capacity magazines or required domestic abusers to surrender their firearms even if they are under a restraining order, according to Everytown.
Maine does not require background checks for all gun purchases and lacks red flag laws. Portland Press Herald via Getty Images
Everything we know about the mass shooting in Maine
At least 18 people have been killed and more than a dozen injured after a gunman opened fire at two separate locations in Lewiston, Maine.
Police identified the possible suspect as Robert Card, 40, and believe he may have been driving a white Subaru Outback, which was later located in Lisbon, about 8 miles from the shooting locations, according to CentralMaine.com.
Lisbon residents were also ordered to shelter in place, and authorities warned that Card could be armed and dangerous.
Maine State Police advised local residents and businesses to lock their doors and shelter in place.
The police have released this photo of Card.
On Wednesday night, emergency personnel were called to separate the shootings at Sparetime Recreation bowling alley and Schemengees Bar and Grille Restaurant, according to the Sun Journal.
The death toll almost matches the annual number of homicides in the state of Maine: 29 homicides were reported in 2022.
Lewiston is a city of about 38,000 people nearly 30 miles north of Portland.
President Biden was notified about the mass shooting.
The state also does not require a permit to carry concealed weapons.
Ultimately, Everytown has ranked Maine 25th among all states in terms of the need to strengthen gun laws, saying, “State leaders must do more to prevent gun violence.”
This year, the state notably rejected proposals to require background checks for private gun sales and create a three-day waiting period for gun purchases.
Police in Lewiston, Maine, said the possible suspect was driving a white Subaru Outback. Lewiston Maine Police Department
The state’s failure to pass new gun reform laws has drawn the ire of many, including famed author Stephen King, a Maine native, who criticized the lack of regulations after Wednesday’s massacre.
“The shootings happened less than 50 miles from where I live,” King wrote in X. “It’s rapid-fire killing machines, people. This is madness in the name of freedom. Stop electing apologists for murder.”
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Source: vtt.edu.vn