Dear Council Members, I am a member of Moms Demand Action for Gun Safety and the Palo Alto Friends (Quaker) Meeting. My Quaker faith led me to join the Moms Demand Action as I have experienced such heart sickness when reading and hearing about the damage wrought on people of all ages through the presence of guns in homes. Accidental shootings, suicides, domestic violence injuries and death. These occur on a daily basis. I applaud your consideration of enacting a safe gun storage ordinance for Menlo Park. I urge you to re-consider making violation of such an ordinance to include criminal penalties. The goal of such an ordinance is education and persuasion - not further incarceration. My Quaker principles and values call for us to strive for safe living environments for all, not for finding yet more ways that increase the prison and jail population. Change the consequences to civil penalties and consider allotting funds for assisting our fellow residents with lower incomes to purchase safe gun storage mechanisms. Prevention first, please. Thank you for taking the time to think through your position on this issue. Peace, Virginia Kenyon Received on Fri Mar 06 2020 - 22:38:01 PST
