Michael Symons

@MichaelSymons_

Senate committee votes 5-0 for the proposal

Bill crafted after 2013 shooting death in Toms River of a 6-year-old by 4-year-old

Penalties for gun owners who don’t properly secure weapons could reach 5 years in prison

Bill still has three legislative hurdles before it would reach Gov. Chris Christie

TRENTON – New Jersey lawmakers are looking to upgrade the penalties for allowing children access to loaded, unlocked firearms.

The bill, which a Senate committee advanced unanimously Thursday, was written in response to the April 2013 death of 6-year-old Brandon Holt of Toms River, who was accidentally shot in the head by a 4-year-old with a loaded .22-caliber rifle as they played.

State law already requires gun owners to store loaded firearms in a locked container or secure location or secure them with a trigger lock if they reasonably should know a minor would likely have access to the weapon.

Now, officials are considering stricter penalties. Currently, if an unsecured gun is used by a minor, it’s a disorderly person’s offense, punishable by up to six months in jail and a fine up to $1,000.

Under a proposal, it would be a fourth-degree crime carrying up to 18 months in prison and a $10,000 fine if an injury results or a third-degree crime punishable by 3 to 5 years and a $15,000 fine if death or serious injury results.

“Hopefully, it may dissuade some people in the way that they treat their firearms,” said bill sponsor Sen. James Holzapfel, R-Ocean.

Holzapfel said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported nearly 800 children under age 14 were killed in gun accidents from 1999 to 2010.

“It’s so simple to me,” Holzapfel said. “I’m a great supporter of people having the right to bear arms. I have weapons in my own home, but they’re packed accordingly. At the end of the day, when you see the details of the tragedies that occur that don’t have to occur, that’s the purpose of the legislation.”

Scott Bach, executive director of the Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs, asked unsuccessfully for the vote to be delayed.

“These issues are not simple. Safe-storage laws are not always what they seem to be, and there is not a one-size-fits-all solution to the issue,” Bach said. “Every household situation is different. You have urban areas with high crime. You have remote rural areas. Each family might have to make its own decision about what’s appropriate, and New Jersey’s law as it currently exists takes away that discretion.”

Bach said the law should contain an exception for justifiable self-defense. He said the proposal isn’t needed because prosecutors can use child endangerment and criminal negligence laws already on the books.

The father of the 4-year-old who killed Holt, Anthony Senatore, has been indicted on six counts of child endangerment for keeping various firearms unsecured and accessible to his children.

Michael Symons: 609-984-4336; msymons@app.com