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Oakland is the Next California City Seeking Stricter Gun Laws

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Oakland is the next city in California seeking stricter gun laws on large-capacity magazines and locked storage of firearms in homes and cars.

The Oakland City Council’s public safety committee voted in favor of the new legislation and is now being forwarded to the full supervisors for a January 5 vote.

More Requirements for Locked Storage at Home

In the the proposed ordinance, guns would have to be stored in a locked container or disabled with a trigger lock. City council member, Rebecca Kaplan, explained that many of the guns used in crimes are stolen. By implementing stricter laws to enforce storage safety, the hope is that this will help in decreasing those statistics.

High-Capacity Magazines Ban

The ban on high-capacity magazines is based on similar legislation implemented in Sunnyvale and San Francisco; owners of magazines able to hold more than 10 rounds were mandated to turn them in or remove them from city limits.

Magazines of this nature are illegal to sell, purchase, or manufacture in the state of California. Owners in possession of them prior to 2000 are exempt and allowed to keep them.

Under the gun legislation proposal, it would require gun owners to keep their guns locked in either a lock box or a trigger lock while stored inside their homes.

Requirements to Lock Guns Left in Vehicles

Vice Mayor Rebecca Kaplan and City Attorney Barbara Parker are proposing two ordinances regarding the theft of guns from vehicles … as well as police cars. One would make it a crime for firearms, magazines, or ammunition to be “left unsecured in cars on city streets and the second would enact similar restrictions for law enforcement officers with city-issued firearms.”

If this gun law is passed, civilians who leave guns unlocked in a car would be charged with a misdemeanor and is punishable by up to 6 months in jail and a $1,000 fine. Penalties for Oakland police officers would be at the department’s discretion.

Since guns are stolen related to auto burglaries are in the thousands and this proposal is designed to cut down on the number of incidences that police respond to. In 2014, Oakland police reported over 7,000 auto burglaries in the city.

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