BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 231
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ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 231 (Ting and Gomez)
As Amended May 6, 2013
Majority vote
PUBLIC SAFETY 5-2 APPROPRIATIONS 11-5
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|Ayes:|Ammiano, Jones-Sawyer, |Ayes:|Gatto, Bocanegra, Ian |
| |Mitchell, Quirk, Skinner | |Calderon, Campos, Eggman, |
| | | |Gomez, Hall, Holden, Pan, |
| | | |Quirk, Weber |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Melendez, Waldron |Nays:|Harkey, Bigelow, |
| | | |Donnelly, Linder, Wagner |
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SUMMARY : Creates the crime of criminal storage in the third
degree, which imposes liability if a person negligently stores
or leaves a loaded firearm in a place where he or she knows, or
reasonably should know, that a child is likely to access it.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Provides that a person may be found guilty of criminal storage
of a firearm of the third degree if all of the following
conditions are satisfied:
a) The person keeps any loaded firearm within any premises
that are under the person's custody or control; and,
b) The person negligently stores the firearm or leaves it
in a place where the person knows or reasonably should know
that a child is likely to gain access to it, unless
reasonable action has been taken to secure the firearm
against access by a child.
2)Specifies that criminal storage of a firearm in the third
degree is punishable as a misdemeanor.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Provides that a person may be found guilty of criminal storage
of a firearm of the first degree if all of the following
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conditions are satisfied:
a) The person keeps any loaded firearm within any premises
that are under the person's custody or control;
b) The person knows or reasonably should know that a child
is likely to gain access to the firearm without the
permission of the child's parent or legal guardian; and,
c) The child obtains access to the firearm and thereby
causes death or great bodily injury to the child or any
other person.
2)Specifies that criminal storage in the first degree is
punishable by imprisonment pursuant to Penal Code Section
1170(h) for 16 months, or two or three years, by a fine not
exceeding $10,000, or by both that imprisonment and fine; or
by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, by a
fine not exceeding $1,000, or by both that imprisonment and
fine.
3)Provides that a person commits the crime of "criminal storage
of a firearm of the second degree" if all of the following
conditions are satisfied:
a) The person keeps any loaded firearm within any premises
that are under the person's custody or control;
b) The person knows or reasonably should know that a child
is likely to gain access to the firearm without the
permission of the child's parent or legal guardian; and,
c) The child obtains access to the firearm and causes
injury, other than great bodily injury, to the child or any
other person, or the child carries the firearm to a public
place, or brandishes the firearm.
4)Specifies that criminal storage in the second degree is a
misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not
exceeding one year, by a fine not exceeding $1,000, or by both
that imprisonment and fine.
5)Imposes criminal liability on any person who keeps a pistol,
revolver, or other firearm capable of being concealed upon the
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person, loaded or unloaded, within any premise that is under
his or her custody or control and he or she knows, or
reasonably should know, a child is likely to gain access to
that firearm without the permission of the child's parent or
legal guardian, and the child obtains access to that firearm
and thereafter carries that firearm off-premises. This
violation carries a punishment of imprisonment in a county
jail not exceeding one year, by a fine not exceeding $1,000,
or both.
6)Provides that if a person keeps any firearm within any
premises that is under his or her custody or control and he or
she knows, or reasonably should know, a child is likely to
gain access to that firearm without the permission of the
child's parent or legal guardian, and the child obtains access
to that firearm and thereafter carries that firearm to any
public or private preschool, elementary school, middle school,
high school, or to any school-sponsored event, activity or
performance, whether or not on school grounds or elsewhere.
This violation carries a punishment of imprisonment in a
county jail not exceeding one year, by a fine not exceeding
$5,000, or both.
7)Exempts a person from prosecution for criminal storage under
any of the following conditions:
a) The child obtains the firearm as a result of an illegal
entry to any premises by any person;
b) The firearm is kept in a locked container or in a
location that a reasonable person would believe to be
secure;
c) The firearm is carried on the person or within close
enough proximity thereto that the individual can readily
retrieve and use the firearm as if carried on the person;
d) The firearm is locked with a locking device, as
specified, which has rendered the firearm inoperable;
e) The person is a peace officer or a member of the Armed
Forces or the National Guard and the child obtains the
firearm during, or incidental to, the performance of the
person's duties;
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f) The child obtains, or obtains and discharges, the
firearm in a lawful act of self-defense or defense of
another person; and,
g) The person who keeps a loaded firearm on premises that
are under the person's custody or control has no reasonable
expectation, based on objective facts and circumstances,
that a child is likely to be present on the premises.
8)Requires the district attorney to consider the fact that a
person who allegedly violated the criminal storage provisions
attended a firearm safety course prior to the purchase of the
firearm as a mitigating factor in deciding whether to
prosecute.
9)Provides that any person who, under circumstances or
conditions likely to produce great bodily harm or death, and
having the care or custody of any child, willfully causes or
permits that child to be placed in a situation where his or
her person or health is endangered, shall be punished by
imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, or in
the state prison for two, four, or six years.
10)Provides that anyone who, under circumstances or conditions
other than those likely to produce great bodily harm or death,
and having the care or custody of any child willfully causes
or permits that child to be placed in a situation where his or
her person or health may be endangered, is guilty of a
misdemeanor.
11)Requires licensed firearms dealers to post notice of duties
regarding storage of firearms accessible to children.
12)Defines a "child" for purposes of the criminal storage
provisions as "a person under 18 years of age."
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, minor, if any, nonreimbursable local costs for local
incarceration, potentially offset by increased fine revenue.
Based on the handful of arrests - and no convictions - for
second-degree criminal storage in 2012, it is unlikely there
would be many third-degree charges. In addition, third-degree
criminal storage could also be charged as child endangerment,
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which carries a more severe penalty.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "What would you do if you
picked up your twelve year old child from their new friend's
house and you saw a loaded gun on the coffee table? What would
you do if you saw your neighbor's three year old child playing
with a loaded gun in their backyard? Would you call the police?
Considering that some 3-year-olds are strong enough to pull the
trigger of many handguns, you may want to. However, our state's
police force wouldn't be able to help you. In current
California law there is no criminal offense in keeping a gun,
whether loaded or unloaded, in a place where a child can access
it, unless the child brings the gun into a public space. This
is in contrast to Texas, New Jersey, Minnesota, Massachusetts,
Maryland and Hawaii, which each have some form of criminal
liability for allowing a child to gain access to a firearm.
"Furthermore, a recent study found that more than 75% of the
guns used in youth suicide attempts and unintentional injuries
were stored in the residence of the victim, a relative, or a
friend. AB 231 will increase California's Child Access
Prevention laws by making it a misdemeanor to leave a gun
accessible to a child. Studies of child access prevention laws
have been shown to be effective at reducing unintentional
firearm deaths among children. In fact, one study found that in
twelve states where such laws had been in effect for at least
one year, unintentional firearm deaths fell by 23% from 1990-94
among children under 15 years of age. In enacting AB 231,
California will be increasing the safety of our most vulnerable
population - our children.
"At the same time, it is of the utmost importance to keep
firearms out of reach of any unauthorized user. AB 231 seeks to
accomplish this by imposing strict, civil liability on owners of
firearms for the deaths and injuries caused by their firearms -
in the event that an owner loses, lends out, or is negligent
with their firearm. Consider the following statistics:
a) "More than half of our nation's 77 million handguns are
stored unlocked.
b) "Tens of millions of negligently stored guns sit in
homes throughout America, where they are easily accessible
to unauthorized and dangerous users.
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"Strict, civil liability assigns social importance and moral
acceptance that firearm ownership does not stop simply because
the owner is not around, or has failed to establish safety
precautions beyond the scope of themselves. AB 231 incentivizes
gun owners to be safely store and closely monitor their guns, be
strict about access to their guns, keep their guns under lock
and key, and follow responsible access recommendations."
Please see the policy committee analysis for a full discussion
of this bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Sandy Uribe / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744
FN: 0000399