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NRA Sues Seattle Over ‘Safe Storage’ Gun Law

NRA Sues Seattle Over ‘Safe Storage’ Gun Law

The National Rifle Association and the Second Amendment Foundation have filed lawsuits against the city of Seattle after the city recently passed a ‘safe storage’ requirement for firearms.

The lawsuit claims that this new gun law violates the state’s preemption statute, and names the city’s mayor Jenny Durkan, Seattle PD chief Carmen Best, and the Seattle Police Department. After hearing about the lawsuit on Friday, Durkan said;

“While they go to court – kids go to the hospital. We can’t prevent every gun death or injury, we can take steps to help prevent tragedies. I am grateful that legal experts who share our commitment to reducing gun violence are standing with us and standing up for safer communities. We will prevail and will continue to push for more protection for our children.”

The new gun law includes the following changes;

  • A gun owner must go to a police station or file a report as quickly as possible if the firearm is lost, stolen or used improperly. If the gun owner fails to report a gun theft, loss of the gun, or if the gun is misused, it could result in civil aciton
  • Gun owners could face a fine of $500 for failing to store the firearm in a locked container or rendering it unusable by anyone but the gun’s owner
  • A fine of $1000 if a minor or prohibited person gets their hands on an unsecured weapon
  • A fine of $10,000 if a minor or prohibited person uses an unsecured firearm to injure, kill, or commit a crime

The lawsuit NRA and SAF filed  claims that state laws (Washington’s) prohibits cities, towns, and counties, from adopting gun regulations that exceed the state’s authority. In a press release, the SAF said;

“The state legislature has sole authority to adopt gun laws including, but not limited to, registration, licensing, possession, purchase, sale, acquisition, transfer, discharge and transportation of firearms.”

The gun law that Seattle passed came after the University of Washington released their findings of a study that shown almost two-thirds of households that own a gun in Washington store it improperly.