Associated Press
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Los Angeles handgun owners will be required to store their firearms in locked containers or disable them with trigger locks under a law unanimously approved Tuesday by the City Council.
The council voted 14-0 to pass the ordinance that requires handguns be locked up, disabled, kept on the owner’s person or placed within that person’s reach. The measure applies only to handguns and not to larger firearms such as rifles.
It was championed by Councilman Paul Krekorian and backed by activists who say it will help prevent children from harming themselves with guns.
Councilman Mitch Englander said before the vote that the intention was not to take rights away from responsible gun owners.
“It’s really about having controlled access and securing that weapon,” he said. “This is less about gun control, and simply more about controlling your gun.”
The storage law is one of two gun-related measures the city of Los Angeles has tackled in recent months, City News Service reported.
Earlier this summer, the city adopted a ban on possessing ammunition magazines holding more than 10 rounds. That law, which goes into effect next month, is currently being challenged in a lawsuit filed by a pair of law enforcement groups, more than two dozen county sheriffs, and the California Rifle and Pistol Association, an official state affiliate of the National Rifle Association.
Copyright 2015 The Associated Press.