(NewsNation) — Police searched Thursday morning for the gunman who opened fire on a bowling alley and bar in Lewiston, Maine Wednesday.
The Lewiston Police Department is looking for 40-year-old Robert Card as the suspect. Authorities warned Card is considered armed and dangerous, and told residents and business owners to stay inside and off the streets.
Photos released by the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office Wednesday evening show a man walking into an establishment with a weapon raised to his shoulder.
The state of Maine does not require a permit to carry guns, and doesn’t ban high-capacity magazines. Recent attempts by gun control advocates to tighten the state’s gun laws have failed, including proposals from earlier this year to require background checks for private gun sales and a 72-hour waiting period for gun purchases. Proposals to ban bump stocks failed in 2019, the Portland Press Herald reports.
While other states have what are called “red flag laws,” which allow certain people to petition a court to have firearms taken from someone they deem to be a threat to themselves or others, Maine has what is considered a “yellow flag law.”
Unlike red flag laws, yellow flag legislation requires a medical opinion, in addition to a court order based on sworn testimony from a police officer, family member or others, that someone should not have access to guns, the Press Herald reports.
Maine’s concealed carry law, which went into effect in October 2015, allows those 21 and older who are allowed to have a firearm to carry a concealed handgun without a permit. Those over 18 and on active duty in the Armed Force or National Guard, or honorably discharged from either, are also allowed permitless concealed carry. “An Act To Authorize the Carrying of Concealed Handguns without a Permit” also lets those older than 21 have a loaded pistol or revolver while in a motor vehicle or trailer.
Maine State Police’s Division of Weapons and Professional Licensing provides concealed handgun permits for about 360 municipalities in Maine, as well as all out-of-state permits. Those in municipalities not part of these 360 can contact their local police department or town office to apply for a permit, the state police said.
Even with a permit, though, it is still illegal in Maine to have a firearm at certain places including courthouses, state parks, schools, federal buildings and the state Capitol, among other places.
Everytown, a nonprofit organization that advocates for gun control, ranked Maine as 25th in the country for gun law strength.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.