Oakland Municipal Code Ch. 9.39 Safe Storage of Firearms in a Residence

This chapter shall be known as Oakland's Safe Storage of Firearms in a Residence Act.

(Ord. No. 13353, § 1(A), 1-19-2016)

The City Council finds as follows:

1. This law is intended to reduce gun violence and gun injuries and make the City safer.

2. Having a loaded or unlocked gun in the home is associated with an increased risk of gun-related injury and death.

3. In 2013, more than five children under the age of twelve (12) were killed each month by guns that were improperly stored and secured at the home of a family member or friend.

4. Children are particularly at risk of injury and death, or causing injury and death, when they can access guns in their own homes or homes that they visit.

5. A 2005 study found that an estimated 1.69 million children under age eighteen (18), including children as young as three years old, are strong enough to fire handguns.

6. More than two-thirds of school shooters obtained their guns from their own home or that of a relative.

7. Quick access to loaded firearms heightens the risk that a young person's impulsive decision to commit suicide will be carried out without reflection or seeking help, and that the attempt will be fatal. One-third of youths who died by suicide had faced a crisis within the previous twenty-four (24) hours. Among people who nearly died in a suicide attempt, almost a quarter indicated that fewer than five minutes had passed between deciding on suicide and making the attempt. While less than ten percent of suicide attempts by other means are fatal, at least eighty-five (85) percent of firearm suicide attempts end in death.

8. Guns kept in the home are more likely to be involved in an unintentional shooting, criminal assault, or used in suicides and against family and friends rather than in self-defense.

9. According to information from the Oakland Police Department, from 2005 through 2015, there were approximately seven hundred seven (707) residential burglaries reported where a firearm was stolen.

10. Applying trigger locks or using lockboxes when storing firearms in the home reduces the risk of firearm injury and death.

11. Keeping a firearm locked when it is not being carried ensures that it cannot be accessed and used by others without the owners' knowledge or permission. This simple measure significantly decreases the risk that the gun will be used to commit suicide, homicide or inflict injury, whether intentionally or unintentionally.

12. Safe storage measures have a demonstrated protective effect in homes with children and teenagers where guns are stored.

13. There is a wide consensus among medical professionals, police chiefs, gun control advocates and gun rights groups that applying trigger locks or using lockboxes to store unsupervised guns in the home promotes health and safety.

(Ord. No. 13353, § 1(B), 1-19-2016)

"Firearm" means any device, designed to be used as a weapon, from which is expelled through a barrel, a projectile by the force of any explosion or other form of combustion.

"Residence" means any structure intended or used for human habitation, including but not limited to, houses, condominiums, rooms, motels, and time-shares. For purposes of this chapter, it also includes a garage which is enclosed within or located adjacent to such a structure and which is not open to the public.

"Locked container" means a secure container that is fully enclosed and locked by a padlock, key lock, combination lock, or similar locking device as defined by California Penal Code Section 16850. It includes a lock box that is listed on the California Department of Justice Bureau of Firearms roster of approved firearm safety devices. For purposes of this chapter, it does not include a bag or other container made of fabric or other penetrable material, such as a regular purse, backpack, or gym bag.

(Ord. No. 13353, § 1(C), 1-19-2016)

Except when carried on his or her person, no person shall keep a firearm (as defined in Penal Code Section 16520 or as amended) in any residence unless the firearm is stored in a locked container, or the firearm is disabled with a trigger lock that is listed on the California Department of Justice's list of approved firearms safety devices.

(Ord. No. 13353, § 1(D), 1-19-2016)

A violation of this section shall be subject to enforcement through criminal prosecution and/or civil penalties, as provided herein.

1. Violation a Misdemeanor. A person who violates this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding six months or by fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000.00), or by both. Each violation shall be deemed a distinct and separate offense.

2. Civil Penalties. The City may assess civil penalties pursuant to Oakland Municipal Code Chapter 1.08 (Civil Penalties) in the amount of one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) per violation.

(Ord. No. 13353, § 1(E), 1-19-2016)

Remedies under this chapter are cumulative and not exclusive. They are in addition to and do not supersede or limit other administrative, civil, and/or criminal remedies provided under state or federal law, or other provisions of the Oakland Municipal Code. The City may seek an order for the award of attorney's fees.

(Ord. No. 13353, § 1(F), 1-19-2016)

In the event that any California statute adopted or referred to in this chapter is amended or succeeded by another enactment of the California Legislature, such amendments shall be deemed automatically adopted as part of this chapter as if fully set forth herein unless the City Council amends this chapter to provide otherwise.

(Ord. No. 13353, § 1(G), 1-19-2016)