Oregon Looks To Make Firearms For Law Abiding Citizens Worthless For Home Defense

The very same people who are protected by armed police officers, some all the time, look to take away the ability to defend your home and and loved ones. Think criminals won’t be looking at this law gleefully? (via Dana Pico)

Oregon gun storage law would be among the toughest in the US

A proposed gun storage law that would be among the toughest in the U.S. is headed for a vote in the Oregon Legislature, with backers saying it will save lives and opponents contending it could lead to deaths.

Meanwhile, in Colorado, a less sweeping gun storage bill was signed into law Monday by Gov. Jared Polis., who said: “It’s a sensible measure to help avoid immeasurable heartbreak.”

Colorado’s new law creates the offense of unlawful storage of a firearm if a person stores a gun knowing that a juvenile could access it without permission or if a resident of the premises is ineligible to possess a firearm.

Oregon’s bill generated testimony from hundreds of people, mostly in writing because there wasn’t enough time to take all the oral testimony.

A vote in Oregon’s House of Representatives on the bill, initially scheduled for Monday, was pushed back by a week to enable Democratic representatives to work with the Senate “to guarantee the bill is on track to pass and be enacted,” said Hannah Kurowski, spokeswoman for the majority House Democrats.

One person testified on a gun being stolen and used for a mass shooting in Portland back in 2012…I though Portland was a Liberal Utopia? Others had different things to say

But opponents say forcing people to keep guns locked up could waste precious moments if they need to defend themselves against armed intruders.

Jim Mischel, of Sheridan, Oregon, described how his wife woke up when he was away one night in 1981. She heard a noise, went to investigate and saw that a man had broken into their home.

She returned to the bedroom and tried to get to a pistol that was in a locked gun box in the nightstand.

“She was unable to get the box unlocked and the pistol out before he got into the bedroom and threatened her with his gun,” Mischel said. “She has never recovered.”

Criminals will know this. They will know that lots of people will comply (why do Dem voters even have guns in places like Portland? Aren’t they anti-gun? Or just anti-gun for Other People?). Law abiding citizens will have a choice: lock the guns up making them almost worthless for home defense, or be a criminal by making sure they are handy. I wonder how much influence the gun storage industry has on this, and other similar, bills.

Oregon’s bill mandates that gun owners secure unattended weapons with trigger locks or in locked compartments. Those who don’t would be strictly liable for any injuries or property damage. If a minor gets ahold of an unsecured firearm, the gun’s owner would face a maximum $2,000 fine.

What kind of safe do you get? A biometric would seem the smartest, giving access to only a few people, but, does your fingerprint work perfectly on your phone every time? What if it is cold? Doesn’t work that well. The fingerprint reader at work will often fail when your finger is too cold or sweaty. Having to carry a key around all the time just in case? What if you drop it? A code? Now trying to put it in when you are freaking out over criminals breaking in.

The idea here is simply to make them worthless for law abiding citizens.