Portland police describe process and limits of Oregon's extreme risk protection orders

Sergeant Josh Silverman of the Portland Police Bureau told the Community and Public Safety Committee on Sept. 23 that Oregon's extreme risk protection orders, commonly called ERPOs or red flag orders, are civil court orders that can bar a person from possessing firearms for one year when there is clear and convincing evidence they pose a significant risk of harming themselves or others.

The panel's presenters — Sergeant Silverman of the Portland Police Bureau's Behavioral Health Unit, Sergeant John Pemberton of the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office gun disposition unit, Jake Chandler of Deschutes County (formerly of Bend Police), and Chelsea Parsons of Everytown for Gun Safety — described how ERPOs are applied for, served and enforced and urged more outreach so family members and crisis workers know to ask law enforcement to file petitions.

The committee heard that ERPOs require evidence of observable behavior, not merely diagnosis or speech. "It is not contingent on any kind of diagnosis," Parsons said, and courts look for "specific evidence of behavior." Silverman said officers and community…