New bill introduced aims to protect children from firearms
FRANKFORT, Ky. (WTVQ) — According to Nationwide Children’s, every year, nearly 1300 children die from guns and many more are seriously injured.
The American Academy of Pediatrics believes the best way to prevent gun-related injuries to children is to remove guns from the home.
But Senator Gerald Neal, says the measure he is introducing is about being proactive and making sure there is accountability.
“It is utilized for certain purposes, but no matter how you look at it’s a dangerous instrument. So not everyone should have access to a gun,” says Sen. Neal.
It is estimated that there are more than 22-million children living in homes with guns.
“We know that not only across the country but in Kentucky, that children and others have had access to guns that should have not had access to guns because they were not secured,” added Neal.
Democratic Senator Gerald Neal has introduced Senate Bill 56, this session, a bill that would help gun owners safely store their firearms away from the reach of children.
“And that responsibility of owning the gun. I believe, and I think it’s reasonable that they be responsible for securing the gun either by a gun locking device or some safe storage depository,” he added.
Senator Neal says the bill is not necessarily for punishment, more so for safety and accountability, “legislation is limited to class a misdemeanor for not reporting it properly, not securing it properly and those sorts of things because it’s not meant as a hammer because most of the people that own guns, they don’t want that to happen.”
The bill, introduced last week also adds that if an owner or another person who lawfully owns a firearm and loses it or gets it stolen needs to report it to police within 24 hours.
“They don’t intend for that to happen but putting some, accountability measures such as a class, a misdemeanor raises one’s eyebrow and thoughtfulness in terms of securing the guns,” also says Neal.
