Thu
Feb 25 2016
05:56 pm
By: Somebody

From the News Sentinel:

Democratic lawmakers unveiled a bill Thursday to deter gun owners from leaving loaded guns accessible to children — and named it "MaKayla's Law" after the 8-year-old Jefferson County girl who authorities say was killed by an 11-year-old neighbor with his father's shotgun.

Well, I guess it'll be sadly interesting to see just how the NRA and their friends try to say that you can't hold gun owners responsible for the consequences when children get unsupervised access to loaded guns. Here's another sensible proposal, but you know we can't have any of that.

Here's a preemptive question: if guns don't kill people; people kill people, who is responsible when the people in question are children? Normally, young children aren't considered to be fully responsible for their own actions because they're, you know, children. So if somebody's been killed and the gun isn't responsible, and the kid who fired the gun isn't responsible, doesn't it logically come to the adult gun owner who left a gun and ammunition laying around where the kid could find it?

I can't quite anticipate what the argument will be, but you know the NRA (an organization that once promoted gun safety and responsible gun ownership) will find some way to say that gun owners who don't secure their guns aren't responsible when a kid finds it and tragedy follows.

reform4's picture

NRA will kill this in a heartbeat

If they are openly in favor of terrorists having assault weapons, they'll definitely go after this one.

R. Neal's picture

Yes, it's hard to imagine how

Yes, it's hard to imagine how the NRA will justify opposing this. My guess is that they will say having your guns unloaded and locked away won't do you any good when Obama's storm troopers come crashing through your door so therefore it's an infringement on their 2nd Amendment right to bear loaded, accessible-at-all-times arms in case of tyranny.

fischbobber's picture

True, but.......

The state of quick safes and quick locks is such that it really isn't an argument. A secured weapon takes no more time to access than an unsecured weapon for a trained and practiced user.

This is a good law and should be a no brainer.

R. Neal's picture

NRA: “We do take the position

NRA: “We do take the position that it is the gun owner’s responsibility to seek information, education and training on how to safely store firearms and not the state’s position to require the firearm owner to do so,” Luber said.

Not even trying to make a cogent argument. Bill postponed anyway.

(link...)

Somebody's picture

That's pathetic.

That's pathetic.

R. Neal's picture

And curiously, Tennessee

And curiously, Tennessee requires mandatory hunter education, including firearms safety training, to obtain a hunting license.

Also, a mandatory handgun safety course or equivalent military/law enforcement training is required to obtain a handgun carry permit.

So apparently it is the state's position to require firearms owners to seek information, education and training in some situations.

P.S. And besides, the law only proposed penalties, right? No mandatory training?

Somebody's picture

Presumably those laws were

Presumably those laws were passed before the NRA adopted its policy that everyone everywhere should have guns for any reason and at all times.

Meanwhile, Iowa is working an a new law to specifically allow children under 14 to handle and use handguns.

DV Tucker's picture

Actually

Actually Texas already has this law on the books and have for a while now. •While storing a loaded firearm, it must be in a place which cannot be accessed by a child under the age of 17, or secured with a trigger lock if there is reason to know that a child under 17 may gain access to the firearm. The owner of the firearm is charged with the crime if the laws are not followed. IE: Manslaughter/murder charges. Precedence has already been set.

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