Would gun owners support a federal law to have all firearms locked

[former-republican]

and secured while left in the home?

I would support a law like this.
The past two mass shootings were stolen firearms by the shooter.

I'm a gun owner but I have my firearm always locked up in my home .
I never leave a firearm unsecured.

[gateley]

1. I think most gun owners are as horrified by this as those of us

who don't own guns.

[Happyhippychick]

7. I wish I could agree with that but I see their horror directed at the notion of having their rights

Infringed upon.

[gateley]

12. I think that's too general -- not every gun owner feels that way, surely.

[Happyhippychick]

13. Not every, just what I'm seeing from folks on FB. I don't have a lot of pro gun friends.

[Recursion]

2. Personally? Yes

Enforcement would be ludicrous, though

[greytdemocrat]

4. Exactly.

A "Feel Good" law that accomplishes nothing.

[Bosso 63]

8. Bullshit.

[doc03]

3. Probably many would but the NRA will not support any gun laws

at all.

[Bosso 63]

5. Yes

Hell Yes.

[Logical]

6. Yes. I would. But this 20 year old kid might have know how to unlock them.

[former-republican]

10. I don't know if you're a gun owner but we have to figure something out

I know it's not economically feasible for everyone to buy a gun safe.
But I'm willing to wager most gun owners in this country could afford one.

[Logical]

17. I am all for a law to make guns be locked up when not in use. And prison time for parents....

who have a child hurt with a non-secured gun.

But at what age should kids be able to access the safe? 18? 21? That is the hard part.

[former-republican]

19. 18?

I know in my state you have to be 18 to hunt alone with a long gun.
Anyone younger has to be with an adult 18 or older.

[Logical]

24. Sounds OK to me. I cannot stand hearing about kids who found their parents guns. hate it.

[former-republican]

27. me too

[CreekDog]

22. if you can't buy a gun safe, you shouldn't be owning a gun

sorry.

these things kill kids all the time. they get stolen all the time.

if you can't be a responsible gun owner, you shouldn't be allowed to be responsible for a gun.

period.

[former-republican]

29. I'm trying not to make this post against people that through no fault of their own

have fallen on hard times and a $500 or $1000 purchase would be difficult.

Perhaps a grace period of 1 year than all firearms need to be secured in the home?

[Lizzie Poppet]

26. I think if such a requirement were enacted at the federal level...

...that would open up a huge market for very affordable gun safes. They might not be the equal of some of the high-end models out there, but they'd still place a huge barrier in the way of criminal acquisition of the weapons inside.

They'd probably be made in China, of course...but you can't have everything.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

15. As a parent I was surprised to later learn just how many of our secrets our daughters knew

Including where the back up copy of the safe combo was.

[Marrah_G]

20. They have keys

Of course if someone is really determined they might be able to find the key

[Glassunion]

9. This one encroaches on the 4th Amendment.

Like a prior poster, on a personal level, absolutely. But it would be near impossible law to enforce and lacks in practicality.

[kestrel91316]

11. Most gun owners would fight this tooth and nail, but I say fuck 'em and proceed

with due haste. If you can't or won't keep your dangerous toys locked up, and somebody gets them and does harm with them, you should face the exact same penalties as the actual perpetrator.

[Marrah_G]

14. That is the law in Mass

I would like to see the Mass laws in effect all over the country and elimination of guns shows and online sales.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

16. There is no such thing as online sales...

[rrneck]

18. That teacher probably bought those guns for those boys.

I don't see a female kindergarten teacher interested in an AR15. It's possible of course, but I sort of doubt it.

It's always a good idea to keep guns locked up, especially if you have kids in the house.

[Separation]

21. I have two safes

One for my firearms and the other safe for any ammo I might have in another room. I would totally support this law.

Whether people like it or not some new laws are coming down the line.

[Lizzie Poppet]

23. This one does.

I also advocate serious penalties for people who fail to take responsible security measures with their firearms, and those firearms subsequently fall into the hands of criminals.

[former-republican]

30. agree

[Yo_Mama]

25. It's certainly good practice

But a weapon stolen from a parent by a child living in the house is in another category, surely?

I hate to point this out, but there is at least a chance that the woman had bought the guns for protection FROM her son, and since she is now dead, it may be that they were not unattended at the time of her death.

It's worth a discussion, but I think we are fooling ourselves if we think that such a law could easily be enforced or that it may have prevented this particular tragedy. Maybe in the days to come we will learn more.

Parents of mentally ill children are sometimes faced with truly horrific choices, and at this time I am too heartsick to write more.

[WhaTHellsgoingonhere]

28. Republican response

[sarisataka]

31. I would support it

But think it would have little effect

[marlakay]

32. I support it

and I think if a crime is done when its not locked up that person should get in trouble also which would force people to lock them.

Its not just for crimes to others but a friend of mine, her son committed suicide last winter using her husbands gun. It was locked but he knew where the keys were (just as bad...)

It caused marriage problems for awhile because the wife is anti gun...

[slackmaster]

33. Yes I would, but I believe a couple of other things are needed. One is education.

People need to be taught the importance of keeping dangerous weapons locked up where unauthorized people can't get them. I mean really locked up, something that a determined teenager could not defeat even with a whole afternoon of unsupervised access to the container.

Effective gun storage devices are expensive. My safe cost nearly $3,000. It was worth buying because of the value of my gun collection - That is a component of my retirement savings, and I can't afford to risk having it stolen. It has a Sargent & Greenleaf Series II dial combination lock similar to ones used on bank safes. I am the only person who knows the combination, though a relative has it written down in a sealed envelope kept in her safe.

That's why I think there should be a federal tax incentive to encourage gun owners to buy robust gun safes. If I could have had my income tax reduced by 10% of the value of the safe, I probably would have bought it a year or two earlier than I did. My previous storage device, a locker with two Ace key locks, had become too small.

I would not object to a federal safe storage law, but I don't believe people should expect it to be very effective without education and a financial incentive to accompany it.