Not to be outdone by the gun-haters to their south, the state of Oregon aims to pass a raft of new gun-control laws that would do little to nothing to prevent gun violence.
New gun-control laws
The 45-page bill, known as SB978, would change a host of the state's gun laws, including:
- Allowing firearms retailers to set their own minimum age to purchase a firearm up to the age of 21
- Creating new gun storage requirements that requires a firearm to be securely locked when it is not on the owner's person
- Making the gun owner liable for any injury done by an unsecured firearm within two years of its theft unless they reported it within 72 hours.
- Requiring the theft of firearms to be reported within 72 hours of the time of the theft or when the owner "reasonably should have known of the loss or theft."
- Requiring minors to be directly supervised by an adult when operating a firearm; exceptions are made for hunting, trapping or target shooting, or if the minor has a valid youth hunting license.
- Making a firearm owner culpable if a minor gains access to an unsecured firearm, with the degree of the crime depending on what the minor does with the firearm
- Tightening laws regarding the purchase of "unfinished frame or receiver," aka "ghost guns" or 80-percent lowers to treat them the same as regular firearms.
- Creating a law to make it illegal to create or sell an "undetectable firearm" (this is already illegal under federal law).
- Raising the fees for concealed handgun permits.
- Allowing local municipalities, schools, and universities to prohibit persons with a concealed carry license from carrying in buildings or on campuses.
The Assault on the 2nd Amendment
While supporters support these new gun-control laws, the legislation is an assault on the 2nd Amendment from all sides. Raising the fees for concealed handgun permits tends to prevent the poor from exercising their 2nd Amendment rights, and no evidence has been presented that the current fees are insufficient to cover the government's costs.
Allowing municipalities, schools and universities to prohibit concealed carriers on their campuses indulges the leftist fantasy that gun free zones can keep people safe without actually providing any real security.
The new gun storage requirements are a direct affront to the Supreme Court's Heller decision which made a point that making it illegal to be able to quickly access a firearm to defend one's hearth and home was unconstitutional. (In the Heller case, Washington, D.C.'s laws required home-defense firearms to be disassembled and the gun and ammo stored in two separate places. "Safe" gun storage laws depart from this only by degree.)
Making failure to report the theft of firearms a crime only serves to victimize burglary victims a second time. Prosecutors will decide when a victim "should have known" when the gun was stolen, allowing dishonest or overzealous prosecutors to promote their anti-2nd Amendment bona fides at a victim's expense.
Greg Terhune says it best
Oregonian Greg Terhune, who testified before the Oregon legislature, said it best:
“You want to make felons of your citizens, so that you can, well, let’s say, take away all their guns,” said Greg Terhune, who told lawmakers he was the proprietor of a Salem personal protection training business and served as a emergency services chaplain in Keizer.
He ended his testimony by saying gun owners were “citizens, not subjects.”
“If you further infringe on our rights, we will not comply,” Terhune said, just as the two-minute timer started beeping.
Opponents erupted in applause.
We encourage Oregon residents to fight these new gun-control laws as restrictions on their 2nd Amendment rights. We don't want to add yet another state to our list of Restricted States.
