Democratic state Rep. Ruth Kagi is trying again to impose consequences on gun owners who fail to keep their firearms out of the reach of children and something tragic happens.
Under a bill she introduced Monday, a person could be charged with child endangerment if they leave a gun in a place where a child finds it and then uses the weapon to threaten, injure or, worse, kill someone.
“Unsafe storage of firearms can have devastating consequences for children in and out of the home and in the community,” reads House Bill 1747.
The bill creates a crime of child endangerment due to unsafe storage of a firearm. A person could be found guilty of a gross misdemeanor if a child uses the firearm to cause personal injury or death. The person could be charged with a misdemeanor if the child displays the gun in a public place or in an angry and threatening manner, or discharges the gun.
There are exclusions such as when a child is using a gun with the permission of and under the supervision of a parent. Also, if the juvenile obtains the gun illegally the adult won’t be charged.
The bill also would require that when a firearm dealer sells a gun they must provide or offer to sell the new owner a means of locking up the weapon. Also, every store or shop where guns are sold would have to put up a sign that reads “You may face criminal prosecution if you store or leave an unsecured firearm where a child can and does obtain possession.”
Kagi pushed a safe storage bill the past two years. It was different in that it would have found a person guilty of reckless endangerment if their gun fell into the hands of a child. This version, she said, is modeled after a safe storage law in Florida.
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