New York law couldn’t be used to disarm reservist before Maine shooting, Army official says

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — The Army couldn’t use New York’s red flag law to disarm a reservist experiencing a mental health crisis before a mass shooting in Maine because he was not a New York resident, a nurse practitioner told an independent commission.

Maj. Matthew Dickison testified that Robert Card was displaying psychosis and paranoia in July 2023 when he evaluated Card at an Army hospital, where Card was taken for evaluation. Dickison concluded Card was unfit for duty and shouldn’t have access to guns, and said he was surprised when Card was released two weeks later from a private psychiatric hospital.

Months later in Maine, 18 people were killed when Card opened fire at two locations in October in the deadliest mass shooting in Maine history. Card died by suicide, and his body was found two days later.

Dickison told commissioners on Thursday that he attempted to use New York’s SAFE Act to temporarily seize Card’s weapons but gave up when it appeared the law could only be used on New York residents. Card, from Bowdoin, Maine, was in New York to train West Point cadets when fellow reservists became alarmed by his behavior.

A civilian Army medical contractor, meanwhile, defied a subpoena to appear before the independent commission, which is investigating facts surrounding the shooting and what could’ve been done to prevent it.

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