The proposal’s opponents said it infringes on their Second Amendment rights, particularly for gun owners who do not have children living with them. Under current state law, gun owners are required to keep firearms in a secure container or disabled with a device like a trigger lock only if they live with a person who cannot legally have a weapon under state or federal law.
Opponents also argued the proposal is unenforceable and that locking a gun in a safe would make it difficult to access and use in a moment of self-defense. Wendy Hauffen, executive administrator for the San Diego County Gun Owners political action committee, suggested breaking the law should be an infraction rather than a felony or misdemeanor.
“This will allow the storage conversation to be had, which is stated as one of the purposes for passing this regulation, while not filling jails full of violators,” Hauffen said. “Criminalizing normal activity has the potential to ruin a lot of innocent lives and this is especially a concern in a city like San Diego, where we have so many residents such as active-duty military, who come from so many other states where this kind of law doesn’t and would never exist.”
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