Below the Radar: The Kimberly Vaughan Firearm Safe Storage Act

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IDENTILOCK Firearm Trigger LockUnited States – -(AmmoLand.com)- Sometimes, when legislation is targeting your Second Amendment rights, it doesn’t necessarily come in the form of a ban or licensing and registration. Sometimes, the worst infringements are those that literally make it impossible for people to exercise their Second Amendment rights in one way or another without risking arrest (and worse). It could be anything from closing land used for hunting. It could be a noise ordinance that shutters the range you went to for years. It could even be something as simple as making it impossible to defend yourself without entering a state of legal jeopardy. This last item is what HR 4080, the Kimberly Vaughan Firearm Safe Storage Act, that is the third part of a three-bill package introduced by Sheila Jackson Lee (the others are HR 4081 and HR 4082), does to Americans who are exercising their Second Amendment rights. In a very real sense, it makes having your firearm ready for perhaps its most important role – personal protection in your home – a federal crime. Loyal AmmoLand News readers can see for themselves in the text of the legislation. Literally the only safe harbor to avoid prosecution for having a firearm in your home be stolen and misused is to have your firearms and ammo “secured, unloaded, and separately, in a safe certified by the Attorney General” while the firearm itself is “locked with a trigger lock certified by the Attorney General.” How viable is that firearm as an option for self-defense? The short answer is that the firearm is NOT viable. But if you don’t render the firearm non-viable as an option, you could face 20 years in prison. Felons in possession of firearms only face a maximum of ten years under 18 USC 922 and 18 USC 924. Jackson Lee’s proposal is worse. If you do get convicted, the Attorney General keeps the firearm and ammo at your expense. There are no provisions for the return of the firearm and ammo. Eventually, the expenses will just mount until you decide to give it up. Which is part of the idea. The other nasty provision is that one self-defense scenario that has emerged at times can also lead to that 20-year sentence. So, imagine if there is a situation where a 16-year-old grabs a firearm and used it to protect their family. During that moment, they fire shots and send the assailants fleeing. Under an anti-Second Amendment president, we could very well see an appointed U.S. Attorney order a prosecution. Like HR 4081, the Sabika Sheikh Firearm Licensing and Registration Act, this bill is named for a victim of the Santa Fe High School shooting. Again, Sheila Jackson Lee wants to try to deflect criticism from those with legitimate objections to this legislation. The fact is that there are laws on the books punishing the theft of firearms. There are laws that handle those who willingly hand over firearms to felons and other prohibited persons. HR 4082 simply attacks the right to self-defense. Second Amendment supporters should contact their Representative and Senators and politely urge them to defeat this bill.
About Harold Hutchison Writer Harold Hutchison has more than a dozen years of experience covering military affairs, international events, U.S. politics, and Second Amendment issues. Harold was consulting senior editor at Soldier of Fortune magazine and is the author of the novel Strike Group Reagan. He has also written for the Daily Caller, National Review, Patriot Post, Strategypage.com, and other national websites.