The Lincoln City Council on Monday unanimously approved an ordinance requiring gun owners to report thefts of their weapons to police.

That vote came after an amendment was approved removing language that would require owners to include the time, place and manner of the theft.

At least one defense attorney had said including that language could wind up requiring gun owners to incriminate themselves if they hadn't properly secured their weapon, which would violate the Constitution's Fifth Amendment.

Council Chair Jane Raybould had introduced the reporting proposal, which requires people to notify police within 48 hours of discovering their gun had been stolen.

The two-day grace period is geared toward ensuring police investigators get notified when video surveillance recordings or physical evidence is still generally available, Raybould said.

Anyone found to have violated the ordinance would face up to six months in jail and a $500 fine.

Her ordinance draws from the recommendations of Lincoln's Child Access to Firearms/Safe Storage Task Force, which pointed to a similar mandatory reporting law in Seattle.

Raybould on Monday noted that more than 60 firearms were stolen from vehicles in Lincoln in 2017 and 2018.

She said that while she understands and supports the Second Amendment guaranteeing people's right to own firearms, "with that right comes additional responsibilities."

Councilman Roy Christensen, who had opposed the ordinance and criticized its approach as making crime victims criminals, chose to support it after the amendment was approved.

Christensen said he consulted with several attorneys about the ordinance and said that with the language requiring divulging circumstances removed, "there does not appear to be any conflict easily identified with the state Constitution."

Christensen has introduced his own gun ordinance, requiring firearms left in vehicles to be locked up.

He has delayed consideration of his proposal until later in October to work out problems with the ordinance's wording.

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Council approves gun theft reporting ordinance after tweak - Scottsbluff Star Herald