Dear City Council,
I am so happy to see that Menlo Park is considering adopting the San Mateo County safe storage model ordinance.
This ordinance will help gun owners in our City better understand the dangers of unsecured firearms in the home. Guns are now the leading cause of death among American children under the age of 18. Anything we can do to reduce child access to guns will help bring this number down.
Securely stored firearms are also unlikely to be stolen in a burglary, reducing the number of guns available to criminals and other prohibited persons. Each year, an estimated 200,000 to 500,000 guns are stolen in the United States, and many are funneled into the underground market, where once-legally-owned firearms can be transferred to people with dangerous histories. Locking up guns in the home also helps reduce suicide - an act that is often impulsively undertaken but which is nearly always fatal when a gun is the chosen method.
Another important effect of this law is the raised awareness of the potential for unsecured guns in other peoples homes. If we can help normalize the conversation about the presence of guns and the dangers of improperly stored guns, we can encourage more gun owners to take storage seriously. It is estimated that 54% of US gun owners do not store their guns securely.
In 80% of school shootings the perpetrator obtained the weapon used either from their own home or from the home of a friend.
This law will not infringe anyones right to have a gun for self-protection. Safes and locks that allow rapid access to the firearm in the event it is needed are readily available at various price points. Moreover, the storage requirement does not apply if the gun is actively being carried on the person.
One aspect of the draft ordinance does trouble me, however, and that is the inclusion of a jail sentence as a potential penalty. Criminal penalties unfairly and disproportionately affect low income and minority communities. These are the populations most likely to come into contact with police and therefore to be found in violation of the ordinance. There is no evidence that these communities are less likely to store their firearms safely yet they will suffer the most from this penalty provision. A jail sentence can cause a cascade of dramatic life impacts from job loss, to child custody loss, to loss of housing.
I support the imposition of a minimal fine instead. The intent of the ordinance should primarily be to change behavior and to educate the population on the best ways to prevent the danger of unsecured guns in the home.
Other jurisdictions in the County have removed the provision for criminal penalties after considering this point and passed a version that includes only civil penalties.
Again, thank you for bringing this ordinance forward for consideration and I hope that you will vote to pass it, with the change to the penalty provision.
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Leah Elkins
Menlo Park resident
Volunteer Legislative LeadPeninsula Moms Demand Action
