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Owners should face civil liabilities for not reporting the loss or theft of a gun that is later used in a crime. The law on reporting losses and thefts should apply to all firearms, not just assault weapons or handguns. Those who lost guns or suffered thefts before the law took effect should be given a reasonable deadline for reporting those losses and thefts. The legal duty to report starts once the owner knew, or should have known, about the loss or the theft. The owners should be required to raise the alarm as soon as possible once they learn their guns are lost or stolen. While cautioning that jurisdictions should consult lawyers when approaching this issue, the Giffords center cites several aspects that make for a good common-sense state law regarding lost or stolen firearms: Calls and emails are equally effective, and you’re far more likely to get through to the actual elected official, rather than a staffer. Once you have the two names you need, go to the web site for your state legislature and find the contact information for your state senator and state house rep.Ĭontacting your state house rep and state senator is different from contacting your federal-level reps. To find your state legislators, plug your address and zip code into this web site: If your state is not listed above, or has laws that could be improved, please call or email your state legislators and ask them to write a bill to address this problem. New Jersey is alone in imposing civil liability on owners who fail to report lost or stolen guns that are later used in a crime, and its law focuses on assault weapons only.

Maryland requires reporting losses and thefts, but only for handguns and assault weapons, not other types of firearms. Michigan specifically requires owners to report thefts, but says nothing about losses. The District of Columbia also has this requirement. The Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence has comprehensive information on how things are now.Īccording to the center, the only states that broadly require gun-owning residents to report losses or thefts to local law enforcement authorities are: It can also help them get their guns back. Timely reporting makes it harder for firearms to fall into dangerous hands. It makes sense to require gun owners to formally report losses and thefts. More than 36 states do not currently require gun owners to report lost or stolen guns. It seems ridiculous on its face, but it’s true. This OTYCD post originally appeared in May 2018.Īsk your state legislators to require gun owners to promptly report lost or stolen guns.

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