Monday October 21st the Lincoln City council will take comments on the proposed ordinance change in storage of a firearm in an automobile.
Any firearm left unattended would have to be secured in a hard case attached to the vehicle. It's problematic for several reasons as well as
more incremental erosion of our 2A rights. This could impact anyone visiting Lincoln from out of town so anyone can write to the City council and
comment ahead of the hearing emailed comments will be added to the record.
email them here: https://www.lincoln.ne.gov/city/council/contact.htm
Here is a letter I emailed to them recently, please borrow any of it you like to build your own message.
I am writing this in regards to the ordinance amending Section 9.36.110 of the Lincoln Municipal Code relating to Firearms in Unattended Motor Vehicle proposed by councilman Christensen. The council member is to be commended on recognizing a serious issue for the safety of Lincoln's residents. Teenage thieves are an ongoing problem. My neighborhood typically experiences a rash of auto break ins every spring and fall. Teenage criminals with stolen weapons is certainly a danger to our fine city.
I must however take issue with the proposed ordinance changes. ARTICLE I Section 1 of the Constitution of the State of Nebraska in part states:
the right to keep and bear arms for security or defense of
self, family, home, and others, and for lawful common defense, hunting,
recreational use, and all other lawful purposes, and such rights shall not be
denied or infringed by the state or any subdivision thereof.
This ordinance places the burden to reduce teen theft on the victims of the crime rather than on the criminals, as such I see this as an infringement of the Constitutional rights of Lincoln residents. Nowhere in this ordinance does it address the root of the problem, teenage thieves, nor does it seek to punish said thieves but instead punishes the victims of the crime.
Additionally there are inherent problems with the storage requirements. A person without a State of Nebraska concealed carry permit who secures a firearm in the glove box of their vehicle while operating it is in violation of State law in that they are concealing the weapon and could be charged with committing a felony offense.
I drive a pickup truck, currently when transporting a long gun I put it in a soft case behind the seat of my truck. I don't believe there is a lockable storage container that would meet the requirements of this ordinance that would fit behind the seat of my truck. I would be in violation of this ordinance if transporting a long gun in the manner I currently do simply by exiting the truck and entering a store for a short amount of time.
Again Councilman Christensen is to be commended for recognizing a serious problem in our city and the desire to "do something" however I would like to see the solution directed at the criminals rather than potentially making criminals of law abiding citizens. I would be curious to know if any of the teens who where apprehended with stolen firearms were sentenced to 6 months in jail or fined more than $500? Could you look into that and get back to me?
I would like to suggest that rather than making criminals of currently law abiding citizens and visitors to our community, the city council focus on stopping or more severely punishing the actual criminals. Also, education and outreach to inform firearms owners to encourage safe storage habits would be a better solution than punishing them for being victims of crime.
Sincerely, Ghost Gog NE
If we could pack the hearing with Pro 2A folks it would send a strong message to the City Council. If you can make it or encourage anyone you know to attend and preferably make a statement
objecting to the new ordinance it could discourage the council. It's overwhelmingly Democrat so it's an up hill battle. We need all the help we can get!