Hoboken Councilwoman-at-Large Emily Jabbour, a candidate for mayor, is sponsoring an ordinance up for second reading to expand a municipal safe gun storage law ahead of Gun Violence Awareness Day on June 6th.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“As we approach National Gun Violence Awareness Day on June 6, I am recommitting myself to bringing attention and action to this life-saving issue,” Jabbour, who founded the Hudson County chapter of Moms Demand Action in 2016, said in a statement.
“Since guns continue to be the leading cause of death for children and youth in this country, we must continue to push for common sense legislation that will make our Hoboken community safer.”
Currently, New Jersey law requires storage of firearms only if a child or other person who is legally prohibited from having firearms resides in the household where the gun is kept.
The ordinance builds on this by requiring all gun owners to securely store their firearms when not under their immediate control, bringing local law up to the “gold standard” that exists in states such as California, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Oregon.
“We have seen the tragic consequences of unsecured firearms far too often – especially when children are involved,” added Hudson County Moms Demand Action leader Amy Faucher.
“These unintentional shootings spike during summer months, when kids are home more often. By passing a secure firearm storage ordinance, Hoboken is taking a critical step toward keeping families safe. We hope more communities across New Jersey will follow suit and put safety first.”
Moms Demand Action has chapters in every state and Washington DC, and is part of Everytown for Gun Safety, the largest gun violence prevention organization in the country with nearly 11 million supporters.
The Hoboken City Council will convene tomorrow at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 94 Washington St., with the public session streaming live on Microsoft Teams.