Kirk

I. BACKGROUND

California law requires notification to “a local law enforcement agency in the jurisdiction in which the theft or loss occurred” when a gun is lost or stolen. (Pen. Code, § 25250, subd. (a).) The person who owns or possessed the gun must make the report “within five days of the time he or she knew or reasonably should have known that the firearm had been stolen or lost.” (Ibid.) A violation of that requirement is an infraction punishable by a $100 fine. (Pen. Code, § 25265, subd. (a).) Penalties increase for repeat offenses: a second violation is an infraction punishable by a $1,000 fine; a third or subsequent offense is a misdemeanor carrying a maximum six-month jail term. (Pen. Code, § 25265, subds. (b), (c).) The reporting requirement was enacted as part of the Safety for All Act of 2016, a voter initiative intended to prevent gun violence with “reasonable, common-sense gun laws” that “reduce gun deaths and injuries, keep guns away from criminals and fight illegal gun trafficking.” (Prop. 63, § 2, approved Nov. 8, 2016, eff. Nov. 9, 2016.) In 2018, the Morgan Hill City Council adopted its own missing firearm reporting requirement. The ordinance requires…