Man sues PSP after 'mental defective' flag prevents him from buying gun

[HiredGoon]

Man sues Pennsylvania State Police after 'mental defective' flag prevents him from buying gun
June 25, 2013 8:56 am

By Rich Lord / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Saying he was told he couldn't buy a gun because he was a "mental defective," a Butler man sued the Pennsylvania State Police late Monday, claiming there was no basis for the denial and that troopers refused to correct the error.

Jeffrey L. Burtner tried in May 2012 to buy a hunting rifle from a federally licensed firearms dealer in Butler, according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh.

He submitted to the required background check. Although he had previously bought guns with no problem, this time the Pennsylvania Instant Check System indicated that he had been involuntarily committed to a mental institution in 1992.

People who have "been adjudicated as a mental defective or who [have] been committed to a mental institution" are not allowed to possess guns, the lawsuit notes.

Mr. Burtner responded that the information was not correct and approached the hospital and provider listed on the PICS response. Both responded that they had no record suggesting any such commitment, according to the complaint.

His attorney, Joshua Prince, provided the documentation to state police attorneys, according to the complaint.

The attorney for the state police responded "that the PSP has been unable to find any involuntary commitment documentation on Mr. Burtner but that Mr. Burtner would have to take legal action for the PSP to remove it from PICS," according to the complaint.

Mr. Burtner seeks a declaration that he is eligible to buy a gun, an injunction directing the police to expunge from their records any reference to an involuntary commitment and payment of attorney fees.

A state police spokeswoman said the agency does not comment on litigation.

[redeye202]

This is where you say, W T F, the PSP say they have no record on him, the hospital says they have no record on him, the provider says they have no record on him, yet the PSP says they have a record on him to deny him the purchase of a gun.

This is a WTF, HUH, SANFU, and Catch 22 all rolled into one.

[ATBackpackin]

The attorney for the state police responded "that the PSP has been unable to find any involuntary commitment documentation on Mr. Burtner but that Mr. Burtner would have to take legal action for the PSP to remove it from PICS," according to the complaint.

IANAL, but how does this make any sense. I would be freaking livid.

[FLICK]

How much is this "legal action" going to cost the collective "us" and the so called mentally defective. A complete waste of money and time for the state of PA and Mr Hurter...

Why would the PSP force legal action... Retards...

[Bill67]

So we all have to pay to get this guys rights restored? Can't the PSP issue a declaration and also say sorry without costing tens of thousands of dollars?
WTF? Admit you are wrong, fix it and move on. Everybody is happy. (oh, then we all wake up and realize it was just a dream.)

[Aggies Coach]

This is an absolute joke. Can anyone in the government just admit when they are wrong and just fix it.

[RaggedEdge]

Cause if god forbid he does something horrible with his gun, they get to cover their ass and say, "see, we tried!"

[flyingjunkie]

Someone needs held personally liable and accountable for this. As long as there is no consequence and they can just tap the taxpayer checkbook to pay both the attorney fees for plaintiff and defendant, they don't care. The PSP already said they're wrong, but "you have to rack up legal fees and take us to court for us to correct it. It's ok, though, because the taxpayers can cover it."

[bogey1]

Can anyone in the government just admit when they are wrong and just fix it.

Thanks i needed that...

[GunLawyer001]

What this usually means is that the citizen was committed to a mental hospital, the form was sent to the PSP as required by law, and the institution destroyed the records at the end of their retention period, probably 7 or 10 years or so. Hardly anyone keeps records for decades.

So the PSP probably has a form from 21 years ago that says that "Jeffrey L. Burtner" is a danger to himself or others, and inpatient care is required. But they don't have the other documentation, the evaluation forms and treatment logs and doctor's notes, because our system doesn't routinely provide all of the details of your mental issues to the government, and we kind of like it that way (under Obamacare, I expect that such privacy is gone.)

Under current law, the PSP is required to deny the citizen, because they have a form that says he's prohibited. The hospital is not required to keep the full records of every patient, so they don't.

Frankly, I don't see any basis for a federal civil rights action. The UFA provides a process for restoring rights and I've been successful in expunging records under that statute, even where there's full documentation of a real commitment and real problems at the time. And I never sent out a press release discussing the client's case or mental health, I don't see how that helps the client. Government records can be expunged, but the Internet is forever.