CITY OF SEATTLE
ORDINANCE __________________
COUNCIL BILL __________________
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AN ORDINANCE relating to the safe storage of and access to firearms; adding a new Chapter 10.79 to the Seattle Municipal Code.
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WHEREAS, gun violence is a public health and public safety crisis in the United States; and
WHEREAS, in 2016, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that the total number of firearm deaths for all ages was 38,658, and the total number firearm deaths for persons under 20 years old was 3,155; and
WHEREAS, in 2015, 714 Washington State residents died from a firearm injury, including 39 children under the age of 18; and
WHEREAS, 78 percent of firearm deaths in Washington State between 2010 and 2017 were due to suicide; and
WHEREAS, in 2015, a child or teen under the age of 17 was killed by gunfire in Washington State every nine days, on average; and
WHEREAS, crime statistics show guns play a significant role in many crimes against persons in Seattle, with crime reports indicating the involvement of a firearm in 66 percent of homicides, 17 percent of robbery incidents, and nine percent of aggravated assaults from 2015 through 2017; and
WHEREAS, the Seattle Police Department has taken 3,153 firearms into custody between 2015 and 2017 through the course of its regular duties; and
WHEREAS, according to the federal Bureau of Justice Statistics, an average of at least 232,000 guns were stolen per year from 2005 to 2010; and
WHEREAS, in the City of Seattle, guns are stolen from homes and cars, including at least 250 guns that were reported stolen in the City of Seattle in 2017; and
WHEREAS, an estimated 150,000 adults in King County reported keeping a firearm unlocked in their homes in 2015; and
WHEREAS, Seattle and King County have long taken a public health approach to reducing gun violence, including the "LOK-IT-UP" initiative, which informs the public about the importance of safe storage and partners with firearm retailers to increase av...
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