Extreme Risk Protection Orders in Michigan (Red Flag Law)

An extreme risk protection order (ERPO) is a Michigan court order that temporarily bars a person from purchasing or possessing firearms because of a risk of serious injury to that person or someone else.^[2][3] The law that created it, the Extreme Risk Protection Order Act, 2023 PA 38, is commonly called the red flag law and took effect on February 13, 2024.^[1]

An ERPO is not a personal protection order (PPO). It concerns firearms only, a wider group of people can ask for one, and it is not limited to protecting the person who files.^[7][2] This page covers who can file, what the judge must find, the deadlines on both sides, and the penalties.

If someone is in immediate danger, call 911. The National Domestic Violence Hotline is free, confidential and open 24/7 at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233), or text "START" to 88788.^[8]

What does an ERPO order?

Under MCL 691.1809(1), the order states that the restrained individual:^[2]

• shall not purchase or possess a firearm;^[2]
• shall not apply for a concealed pistol license, and will have any existing license suspended or revoked once the order is entered into the law enforcement information network;^[2]
• shall, within 24 hours or, at the court's discretion, immediately after being served, surrender any firearms in his or her possession or control to the designated law enforcement agency or, if the court allows, to a licensed firearm dealer on the court's list.^[2]

The provisions the statute requires in the order are all firearm-related; a no-contact term is not among them.^[2] A person who needs a no-contact order as well can ask for a PPO, and the ERPO Act expressly does not limit that.^[9] The differences are laid out in PPO, no-contact order or restraining order: the differences.

Who can file, where, and what it costs

Only the people listed in the statute may file: the respondent's spouse, a former spouse, a person who has a child in common with the respondent, a person who has or has had a dating relationship with the respondent, a person who lives or has lived in the same household, a family member, a guardian of the respondent, a law enforcement officer, or a health care provider.^[10]

"Family member" means a parent, son or daughter, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, uncle or aunt, or first cousin of the respondent.^[11] A health care provider may file only if filing and maintaining the action does not violate federal health privacy requirements or physician-patient confidentiality.^[10]

The action is filed in the family division of circuit court. If the respondent is an adult, it can be filed in any Michigan county; if the respondent is a minor, in the petitioner's or respondent's county of residence. There is no filing fee.^[12] The State Court Administrative Office complaint form for an adult respondent is CC 452.^[13]

Two more points for petitioners. A person may file regardless of whether the respondent owns or possesses a firearm.^[14] And the petitioner's address must not be disclosed in any pleading or paper; the clerk keeps it confidential in the court file.^[15]

What does the judge have to find?

The court must issue an ERPO if it determines by a preponderance of the evidence that the respondent "can reasonably be expected within the near future to intentionally or unintentionally seriously physically injure himself, herself, or another individual by possessing a firearm, and has engaged in an act or acts or made significant threats that are substantially supportive of the expectation."^[3] The petitioner carries the burden of proof.^[3]

The statute lists factors the court must consider.^[16] They include:

• any history of use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force by the respondent against another person or against himself or herself, whether or not a firearm was involved;^[16]
• evidence of a serious mental illness or serious emotional disturbance that makes the respondent dangerous;^[16]
• previous or existing ERPOs, PPOs, pretrial release orders, probation orders, parole orders, or other injunctive orders against the respondent, and any violation of an ERPO or a PPO;^[16]
• convictions, pending charges, or juvenile petitions for offenses that include misdemeanor assault under MCL 750.81, stalking, a crime against a spouse or intimate partner, and animal cruelty;^[16]
• recent unlawful use of controlled substances or abuse of alcohol;^[16]
• evidence of an acquisition or attempted acquisition of a deadly weapon or ammunition within the previous 180 days.^[16]

For someone facing a domestic assault charge, the list is worth noting: a pending charge, a PPO, and a bond or probation order each appear on it.^[16]

Three ways an ERPO case can start

Route	Standard and timing	What happens next
Complaint with notice to the respondent	Preponderance of the evidence; the hearing must occur within 14 days of the date the complaint is filed[3][17]	The respondent receives notice of the hearing and an opportunity to be heard[17]
Ex parte request (no advance notice)	Preponderance of the evidence on the risk of injury, plus clear and convincing evidence, from specific sworn facts, that immediate and irreparable injury will result from the delay of giving notice or that notice itself will precipitate adverse action; decided not later than 1 business day[18][19]	The respondent may request a hearing after being served[20]
Emergency request by a law enforcement officer	Requested verbally by telephone from the judge or magistrate on duty while the officer is responding to a complaint involving the respondent[21]	The officer must file a sworn written petition within 1 business day[21]

Served with an ERPO: the respondent's deadlines

An ERPO is effective and enforceable immediately after the court issues it, and failure to serve it does not affect its validity.^[4][22] The deadlines that follow are short.

1. Surrender firearms. The court decides whether surrender must be immediate or within 24 hours. If immediate surrender is ordered, the court also issues an anticipatory search warrant and the order must be served personally by a law enforcement officer.^[23]
2. File proof of compliance. The restrained person must file with the court either verification that all firearms and any concealed pistol license were surrendered or seized, or verification that he or she had none. The statute says not later than 1 business day; the court rule says 24 hours. Form CC 459 is the verification form.^[24]
3. Compliance hearing. The court must schedule a compliance hearing not later than 5 days after service or actual notice. If the person has not complied or does not appear, the court must issue a bench warrant and a search warrant and may hold the person in contempt.^[24]
4. Request a hearing on an ex parte order. Under the court rule the respondent must request this hearing within 7 days after service or actual notice, and the court must hold it not later than 14 days after service or actual notice. A respondent who does not request it in time waives it.^[20]

Shorter periods apply to respondents in the occupations listed in MCL 691.1805(5), such as police officers, sheriff's deputies, corrections officers, and concealed pistol license holders required to carry a pistol for work: the hearing is held not later than 5 days after service or actual notice, and the request must be made within 3 days.^[20] If the complaint identifies the respondent as a person in one of those categories, the clerk notifies the employer, if known.^[25]

At the hearing on an ex parte order the petitioner still carries the burden of proving the case by a preponderance of the evidence.^[3]

Ending or changing an ERPO early

A restrained person may file a motion to modify or rescind the order: one during the first 6 months the order is in effect and one during the second 6 months. If more than one is filed in either period, the court reviews the extra motion before any hearing and may dismiss it without one.^[26] The court must hold the hearing within 14 days of filing.^[26]

The burden here is the reverse of the PPO rule. At a hearing on the motion, the restrained individual must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that he or she no longer poses a risk of seriously physically injuring another individual or himself or herself by possessing a firearm.^[26] On a timely motion to terminate an ex parte PPO, by comparison, the burden stays with the petitioner.^[27]

Either party has an appeal of right from an order granting, denying, or continuing an ERPO after a hearing.^[28]

Penalties

Conduct	Offense	Maximum
Refusing or failing to comply with an ERPO, first offense	Felony	1 year or $1,000, or both[6]
Second offense	Felony	4 years or $2,000, or both[6]
Third or subsequent offense	Felony	5 years or $20,000, or both[6]
Knowingly placing a firearm in the possession of a person restrained under an ERPO	Felony	1 year or $1,000, or both[29]
Petitioner knowingly and intentionally making a false statement in the complaint, first offense	Misdemeanor	93 days or $500, or both[30]
False statement, second offense	Felony	4 years or $2,000, or both[30]
False statement, third or subsequent offense	Felony	5 years or $20,000, or both[30]

If a court or jury finds that the restrained person refused or failed to comply, the issuing court must also issue an extended ERPO effective for 1 year after the preceding order expires.^[31] If police respond to an alleged violation of an order that has not been served, they must serve it or give notice and allow an opportunity to comply before a custodial arrest.^[22]

Getting firearms back

The court must order that the restrained person may reclaim seized firearms when the ERPO expires or is terminated, unless the person is prohibited from owning or possessing a firearm for another reason.^[32] If a firearm is not reclaimed within 90 days after the order expires or is ordered terminated, the law enforcement agency storing it must proceed under the statutes on disposal of firearms or on unclaimed property.^[32] The person may instead sell or transfer ownership to a licensed firearm dealer.^[32]

A concealed pistol license that was suspended because of an ERPO and surrendered is automatically reinstated by the county clerk on expiration of the order and notification to the clerk, if the license has not expired and State Police verification is complete.^[33] Other firearm restrictions may still apply; see PPOs and firearms, Firearms while the case is pending and Michigan's 8-year gun ban.

ERPO and PPO compared

	ERPO	PPO
What it restrains	Purchasing and possessing firearms[2]	Conduct on the statutory list, which can include firearms[34]
Standard	Preponderance of the evidence[3]	Reasonable cause, for a domestic relationship PPO[35]
Length	1 year from issuance[4]	Set by the judge; an ex parte PPO is valid for not less than 182 days[36]
Violation	Felony[6]	Criminal contempt, not more than 93 days[37]

PPOs are introduced in Personal protection orders in Michigan: an overview.

What people get wrong

"Michigan has no red flag law." It has had one since February 13, 2024.^[1]

"A first ERPO violation is a 93-day misdemeanor." The statute labels the first violation a felony with a maximum of 1 year. The 93-day figure in the Act belongs to a petitioner's first false-statement offense.^[6][30]

"Anyone can report a gun owner and get an order." Only the listed categories of people may file, and a knowingly false statement in the complaint is a crime.^[10][30]

"The hearing after an ex parte ERPO is automatic." The respondent has to ask for it within the time the court rule sets.^[20]