The New Orleans City Council Committee approved an ordinance enforcing stolen gun reports and prohibiting firearms in certain areas, claiming to stride toward a safer city, The New Orleans Advocate reports.
New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Michael Harrison said the NOPD is working to keep illegal and stolen weapons off the streets. He said that monitoring missing guns could prevent weapons from reaching violent criminals.
Harrison anticipates the ordinance will help educate the community on gun safety. It is broken down in four pieces.
The first segment on the ordinance is to allot 48 hours to report a stolen or lost gun. The first offense penalizes up to $250 and $500 for the second.
“What we do not need what we do not want and what we will not do is infringe on anyone’s right to legally own or legally carry a firearm,” Harrison said. “We are just asking gun owner’s to be responsible with the weapons that they actually have.”
Harrison said that 975 guns have been confiscated and there have been 349 gun arrests tied to those year to date and hopes this reform continues the remainder of the year.
“We are well aware this is not a silver bullet or a panacea. There is no magic wand that will cure these ills with a single stroke,” said Councilman Jason Williams. “This keeps guns away from young people and out of the hands of people that will do bad things.”
The second segment addresses banning guns in New Orleans city-owned buildings, parks and other facilities. Williams proposed this is only amending the local definition of a firearm free zone.
Restrictions to this segment include exemption from concealed carry permit holders and law enforcement officers.
Another segment criminalizes the negligence of carrying a concealed firearm, including a foreseeable firearm might discharge or could ensue public fear.
The last segment outlaws guns without serial numbers. This segment is left for prosecution under state law.
The Criminal Justice Committee concluded with four votes to forward the ordinance.
The ordinance was originally proposed in April by Mayor Mitch Landrieu but since has been scaled back to avoid crossing state Legislature statutes. These proposals are in response to a shooting at Bunny Friend Park in New Orleans that left 17 injured last November.
According the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, 10 states and the District of Columbia have laws requiring lost or stolen firearms to be reported.