AB 424 Will Close a Dangerous Loophole That Allows School Districts to Authorize People to Bring Guns into California’s K-12 Schools
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The California chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, part of Everytown for Gun Safety, today applauded Governor Jerry Brown for signing AB 424 into law and Assemblymembers Kevin McCarthy, Miguel Santiago, David Chiu and Todd Gloria for authoring the legislation. AB 424 will help protect California’s K-12 students by keeping guns out of schools.
In 2015, California recognized that civilians should not bring guns into primary and secondary schools by enacting SB 707, which prohibits a person with a concealed carry permit from carrying a firearm into a public or private K-12 school. But, there was still a loophole in the law that allowed school districts to authorize certain people to bring a gun into a school. AB 424 closes this loophole.
STATEMENT FROM CAITLIN KING, VOLUNTEER WITH THE CALIFORNIA CHAPTER OF MOMS DEMAND ACTION FOR GUN SENSE IN AMERICA:
“I applaud Governor Brown for signing into law AB 424, legislation that will close the loophole that currently allows some people to bring guns into our children’s classrooms. As a teacher, I know allowing guns in schools increases the risk of unintentional shootings and can escalate everyday conflicts into deadly ones, without making schools any safer from gun violence. AB 424 is an important, proactive step to put the safety of California children first. In the wake of the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history, I urge the California legislature to continue to reject the extreme gun lobby’s reckless agenda and prioritize gun violence prevention legislation.”