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I have wondered in the past about the responsibility of family and/or close friends when someone is having obvious mental problems, and also has access to guns and/or knives. Sometimes, close associates do not know about the weapons, but sometimes they do. Often, the family takes no action. But what action could/should they take?
I doubt talking to the police would work. Should they hide the weapons? Should they try to have the person committed? What is possible to do in this situation? Has anyone here faced this situation?
Surely there are some obvious warning signs. Surely there is some way to intervene?
In Texas police can take guns form people in mental distress. IDK the criteria. The only example I know of personally is a friend who was considering suicide or just wanting attention, I am not sure which. His gf called the police, telling them what he said and that he had a gun. It was taken and he went inpatient on a 72 hour hold.
This is the usual gun versus anti gun. And everyone on CD is a qualified kitchen table medical specialist.
It doesn't need to be gun vs anti-gun. That wasn't the OP's question. Yeah you have some that are going to push there own agenda, i.e. "its a fallacy that.....". What the hell? That's not the topic. The OP's post addresses where there is already a person with mental health issues. Yeah take it to the P&C forum. Some people just can't help themselves then go off topic into the entire debate.
We should be able to at least agree that weapons in the hands of a person with severe mental illness and access to a weapon should be addressed. And THAT is the OPs question. What's the argument?
EDIT: Reviewing the responses here once again however - most of us gave practical solutions to the OPs scenario.
In Texas police can take guns form people in mental distress. IDK the criteria. The only example I know of personally is a friend who was considering suicide or just wanting attention, I am not sure which. His gf called the police, telling them what he said and that he had a gun. It was taken and he went inpatient on a 72 hour hold.
IDK GF called police because someone was suicidal or just wanted attention.
No! I asked this question because it seems to me that there are sometimes signs of mental disturbance or distress that are ignored, even when distressed people have access to weapons.
I am surely no expert on mental health, but I think that at least often, it's not about ignoring. I think it's a multi-pronged issue.
Sometimes, things like schizophrenia don't really manifest until a person is a young adult. And I don't know...perhaps they don't just suddenly wake up one day, with sudden onset, full blown paranoid delusions. Maybe the symptoms start out milder, and it's not known until further down the line.
And then...we're talking about adults. It's not like a child, and you can use your insurance to get the best help you can for them. These are adults who don't think there's anything wrong with them.
I already gave an example of a lady I know who's probably schizophrenic. I know another lady who had a brother who was mentally ill, who chose to live on the beach in California somewhere. (San Diego, I think) for years. About once a year, the lady would make a trip out to California to check on him and try to talk him into coming back to Missouri with her. He wouldn't have it. He preferred to live the way he was living.
One year she went back, and she couldn't find him. Finally, someone told her that he had died several months back. I don't really know if she was able to have his body brought back or not, or was he buried in a potters field kind of thing, or not. I don't know...if you can't convince an adult that he/she is sick...and out of state at that, what can you do?
I have wondered in the past about the responsibility of family and/or close friends when someone is having obvious mental problems, and also has access to guns and/or knives. Sometimes, close associates do not know about the weapons, but sometimes they do. Often, the family takes no action. But what action could/should they take?
I doubt talking to the police would work. Should they hide the weapons? Should they try to have the person committed? What is possible to do in this situation? Has anyone here faced this situation?
Surely there are some obvious warning signs. Surely there is some way to intervene?
has the family member been evaluated and diagnosed? If so, it's probably illegal in your state for him/her to own a gun. Check your state laws. You may be able to have the police pay him/her a call to remove the firearm, if there's a document on file with medical or mental health authorities, stating the individual has a severe mental illness.
The family of the boulder shooter SHOULD have done something. They've said he's been paranoid for years like extremely and then the sister in law (?) sees him with a big ass gun and doesn't say anything?? I mean COME ONNNNNNN
I am thinking of someone who is obviously paranoid, or who sees things that are obviously not real. We recently had a poster who posted that he believed he was being surveilled by the government through his food. There are people who have schizophrenia or other debilitating mental illnesses. Family members often understand this, but sometimes do not intervene when they have weapons.
We even know of one mom who encouraged her disturbed son (Adam Lanza) to master shooting as a form of therapy.
Your last sentence is exactly why I posed this question.
That's part of the problem - using the clinical term "mental illness" to describe someone that is obviously troubled and should not have weapons. These reliance on clinical terms just results in these guys that come in and say "well studies show that it's not the cause....". Paranoia, prone to violence and anger, extremist views, isolated from normal society. Those aren't mental illness categories but, come on, they are all predictors - these guys have a screw loose, clinical terms be damned.
As you said, family members understand this. They can act responsibly and inform authorities (again, screw the "mental illness" category) or better yet take away the firearms from this, ummm, "troubled person". Or act irresponsibly like the mom of Lanza did.
The family of the boulder shooter SHOULD have done something. They've said he's been paranoid for years like extremely and then the sister in law (?) sees him with a big ass gun and doesn't say anything?? I mean COME ONNNNNNN
Yes. This is the sort of thing I was thinking about when I made the OP.
And there is the case of the Arizona shooter who shot Giffords. His dad knew something was wrong with him; son had bought a gun and hidden it.
Adam Lanza. His mother promoted his use of guns, then locked them away. He figured out the combination, and we know the rest.
People have proximity to guns, and others know they are disturbed in some fundamental way. Family seems oblivious to the threat.
I know that there are not always signs beforehand, but sometimes there are.
I have wondered in the past about the responsibility of family and/or close friends when someone is having obvious mental problems, and also has access to guns and/or knives. Sometimes, close associates do not know about the weapons, but sometimes they do. Often, the family takes no action. But what action could/should they take?
I doubt talking to the police would work.
Why not? They may have suggestions or they may put you in touch with dedicated resources that can help.
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Should they hide the weapons?
Long guns (hunting rifles and shotguns) could be hard to hide.
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Should they try to have the person committed?
That will depend on the situation. But unless I live in an extremely high crime area where I need a gun to save my life, I will not put my guns ahead of the well-being of my family. I would get rid of the guns if I believe they might harm themselves.
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What is possible to do in this situation? Has anyone here faced this situation?
Surely there are some obvious warning signs. Surely there is some way to intervene?
Again, why not ask your local police department for advice? But be careful. The police may be under a legal requirement or policy to follow up and may end up confiscating the guns depending on the situation.
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GF called police because someone was suicidal or just wanted attention. 
