The state senate last night approved a new safe-storage bill that would require that all guns be stored in a locked container or secured with gun locks unless they are in an owner’s possession.
“I am delighted to see the bill requiring safe gun storage pass the senate and am grateful for the work that we, as people of faith, have done to encourage our elected leaders to enact legislation that addresses specific vulnerable areas in preventing gun violence while respecting the rights of responsible gun owners,” said the Rev. Dr. Dena Cleaver-Bartholomew, canon to the ordinary, who joined other faith leaders earlier this month in supporting both the safe-storage legislation and a ban on assault weapons that did not make it out of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
“The work we do together—the crucial investment in gun violence prevention, education, legislation, and community conversations—is a tangible expression of God’s call for us to love and care for one another,” Cleaver-Bartholomew said.
Bishop Nicholas Knisely, a member of Bishops United Against Gun Violence, a network of more than 100 Episcopal bishops, has also lobbied state and federal leaders on behalf of gun violence prevention legislation.
The bill, which passed 28-7, now moves to the house, where a companion bill has been introduced. Its chances of passage are considered to be good.