Colorado governor Jared Polis signs two weapons measures nearly a month after the Boulder shooting

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Both measures were put in place before the mass shooting at a supermarket on March 22, but the tragedy amplified public pressure and urgency to act in accordance with the legislation, lawmakers have said.

Democrats, who control both the Colorado House and the Senate, passed both bills this month with no Republican backing in either house.

Senate Bill 78, renamed the Isabella Joy Thallas Act in honor of a 21-year-old woman who was shot and killed in Denver last summer, requires a gun owner to report his lost or stolen firearm within five days or he must be fined. Thallas was shot in June 2020 with a stolen weapon that has never been reported, according to CNN partner KCNC.
While this legislation cannot of course bring back any of our fellow Coloradoans who are no longer with us, we know that it can not only prevent future loss of life but also be part of the healing of the Thallas family. many others have been hit by gun violence from a stolen gun, ‘Polis said in comments on Monday before signing the bills.
House Bill 1106 requires gun owners to store their firearms “responsibly and safely” when not in use to prevent juveniles and other unauthorized users from accessing them. It also requires a licensed arms dealer to provide a locking device with any sale or transfer of firearms.
“This bill means fewer families losing children to gun accidents and suicide, thanks to the use of $ 8 trigger or cable locks that any family can afford. It’s a simple, effective, and evidence-based solution to keep our kids safe. Democratic state Senator Jeff Bridges, one of the bill’s sponsors, said in a statement last week following the approval of the bill by the Colorado Senate.

Republicans have unsuccessfully tried to amend the bills to limit their scope and create exceptions in certain cases, such as for victims of assault who are unable to promptly report missing firearms.

Isabelle Daigle, a spokeswoman for Colorado state house Republicans, said the measures “attack the core rights of Colorado’s Second Amendment.”

“These bills do not serve common sense to provide solutions to actual problems. Instead, they are just a step on a slippery slope to try to pursue an arms control agenda rather than look for the root causes of the problem,” he said. she said. “We presented solutions and amendments to the legislation that would have been in control, but the Democrats refused at any time.”

In the aftermath of the Boulder shooting, Democrats began discussing additional legislative proposals that they believe will prevent gun violence, including mental health measures Republicans are pushing for in lieu of more restrictive weapons measures.

In a statement, Republican Senator John Cooke condemned Democrats for “focusing on fiddling with the fringe rather than sitting down with stakeholders and tackling the real problem: mental health.”

Regarding HB 1106, Cooke said, “If someone breaks into your home and you need to respond quickly, you will be at a serious disadvantage if your firearm is locked with a government-approved device or in a safe.”

Another Republican state senator argued that the lost or stolen firearms law “punishes the victim.”

“If your home has been broken into and a gun happened to be stolen from you, you can now become a victim of your government again if you are stressed by the intrusion and you don’t report that particular item to the police,” said Senator Paul Lundeen said in a statement, adding that police will not be able to “stop a gun crime simply by knowing the serial number of a stolen firearm.”

The US is grappling with a recent series of mass shootings that have rocked communities, including the Boulder shooting and the March 16 shootings at three Atlanta spas. Eight people were murdered in a FedEx facility in Indianapolis on Thursday, at least half a dozen more mass shootings took place by the end of the weekend, and at least one person was murdered on Tuesday in a supermarket in Long Island, New York.

This story has been updated with more comments.

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