Seattle’s New Storage Law Might Not Withstand Legal Scrutiny

By Tom Knighton

(AP Photo/Dave Martin)

When Seattle passed their firearm storage law, I rolled my eyes. Time and again, these laws get passed, and nothing ever comes of them except a few people get hammered for a momentary lapse. That’s about it. They don’t impact criminals in any way. They only punish the law-abiding citizen by creating another hurdle they have to consider in their day-to-day lives.

However, what I didn’t know is that the law may not survive a legal challenge. You see, Washington state has a preemption clause.

City gun control laws and regulations are generally preempted by Washington state law. Seattle’s latest firearm regulations will test the boundaries of how far a city can go.

“The reason the city might not be preempted by state law is that they’re regulating storage, not ownership or possession,” former state Attorney General Rob McKenna told Seattle’s Morning News.

Even so, McKenna says a court challenge is inevitable. The courts will have to decide whether requiring gun owners to lock up their firearms falls under health and public safety. If that is the case, then Seattle’s law will likely be upheld because all cities have some authority when improving public health.

When the challenge comes, the …Read the Rest

Source:: Bearing Arms