Locked gun storage for cars to be mandated under new Colorado law
DENVER (KDVR) — A bill calling on gun owners to safely store their firearms is now the law in Colorado, with the new rule set to get into effect next year.
The law mandates that any gun left unattended in a vehicle must be locked away and out of sight.
“Being able to possess a firearm is a right, but with rights comes a serious amount of responsibility. And this is one of those things that comes with being a responsible gun owner: that’s having a safe place to store it,” Arapahoe County Sheriff Tyler Brown said.
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Gov. Jared Polis signed the bill into law on Wednesday. When it goes into effect in January, gun owners in Colorado will need to lock up their firearms when leaving them in their cars.
“They need to have a safe place to secure their firearm in their vehicle,” Brown said. “And most vehicles coming with a locked center console or a locked glove box, we really talk about utilizing that. And the one area that we really harp on people for is making sure that they do not leave their firearm in their vehicle overnight.”
Lawmakers sponsoring the bill said the goal is to reduce the amount of gun violence in the state. They also know car thefts have been high in Colorado over the past few years.
What’s required in Colorado’s new gun storage law
To be in compliance with the new law, firearm owners must have a hard-sided, locked case for most guns. For a long gun, the case can be soft-sided, but it needs to be locked.
The law states that a locked gloved box and a locked center console meet the qualifications of a hard-sided, locked container, but there are other options out there.
“First, they are going to be looking at an impenetrable case that is unable to be broken into, something with either a hard plastic or a hard metal that is impenetrable,” said AJ, a supervisor at Bristlecone Shooting, Training and Retail Center in Lakewood. “The case itself will also need to be lockable, either with a keypad or with a key to actually unlock it and access the firearm. They’ll need a cable, which is connectable to the lock and safe itself. And then that cable will be routed around something that is irremovable from your vehicle.”
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Although firearm accessories are not cheap, retailers like Bristlecone have options that will keep owners in compliance without breaking the bank.
“These typically start about $100,” AJ said about lock boxes like the Vaultek LifePod. “There are options sub-$100 as well that you can get into. I would definitely say it’s a protection of your investment, but also you are protecting your community as well.”
The bill takes effect on Jan. 1. Violators could be hit with a fine of up to $500.
“Civil penalties are a little bit harder for us, but making sure individuals really know about it, so the education part of it is something that we talk about on a routine basis with our concealed carry permit holders in the state and through Arapahoe County,” Sheriff Brown said when asked about enforcement.
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