May 6, 2024 Group Watch: Bills Requiring Safe Firearm Storage Move Forward
A divided House Judiciary Committee approved a bill that could subject parents who do not safely secure firearms to criminal penalties. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the state’s firearm mortality was 26.4 per 100,000 people in 2021, trailing only Mississippi, Louisiana and New Mexico. Under the bill, gun owners would be required to secure their firearms with trigger locks or in a gun safe so that children can’ t access them. A parent or guardian whose child carried an unsecured firearm to school could be charged with a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail and a $6,000 fine. The legislation creates an exception for the parent if the child uses the firearm in self-defense and when children are hunting or participating in target shoot competitions.
