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Session of 2000
          HOUSE BILL No. 3016           By Committee on Appropriations           3-3          

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  9             AN  ACT concerning crimes and punishment; relating to family and child
10             safety and the safe storage of firearms.
11      
12       Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
13             Section  1. (a) As used in this section, unless the context requires
14       otherwise:
15             (1) ``Firearm'' means any pistol, revolver, rifle, shotgun or other
16       weapon which will or is designed to or may readily be converted to expel
17       a projectile by the action of an explosion, expanding gases or other com-
18       bustion. Firearm shall not include air rifles, air pistols, BB guns or a
19       firearm which has been rendered unserviceable by a steel weld in the
20       chamber and marriage weld of the barrel to the receiver and which has
21       been registered in the national firearms registration and transfer record
22       in compliance with 26 U.S.C. 5841 et. seq., and amendments thereto.
23             (2) ``Ammunition'' means any ammunition cartridge, shell or other
24       device containing explosive or incendiary material designed and intended
25       for use in any firearm.
26             (3) ``Child'' means any person under the age of 18 years.
27             (4) ``Child safety lock'' means a device or locking mechanism that
28       prevents the normal function and discharge of the firearm. Child safety
29       lock shall not include the built in feature of firearms commonly known
30       as the ``safety.''
31             (5) ``Locked box'' means a case, box or container that is designed to
32       be or can be used to store a firearm and that is designed to be unlocked
33       only by means of a key, a combination or other similar means.
34             (6) ``Residential dwelling'' means a detached single family dwelling
35       or a single family dwelling unit in a structure that contains more than one
36       separate residential dwelling unit used as a place of residence for habi-
37       tation by an individual or individuals.
38             (b) Except as provided in this section, no person shall store or leave
39       a firearm in any residential dwelling where the person knows, or reason-
40       ably should know, that any child is likely to gain access to such firearm.
41       The provisions of this section shall not apply to:
42             (1) A firearm which has been secured with a locking device or other
43       similar device which prevents the firearm from discharging or a firearm

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  1       stored securely in a locked box;
  2             (2) circumstances when a child's access to a firearm is supervised by
  3       an adult;
  4             (3) circumstances when a child's access to firearms is obtained as a
  5       result of an unlawful act;
  6             (4) individuals employed as law enforcement officers as defined by
  7       subsection (e) of K.S.A. 74-5602, and amendments thereto, who are grad-
  8       uates of any law enforcement training program that is certified by the
  9       Kansas director of police training at the law enforcement training center,
10       but only while such person continues to be actively employed as a law
11       enforcement officer as herein defined; or
12             (5) an unloaded firearm when ammunition that is usable in the fire-
13       arm is located in the same residential dwelling as the firearm and is stored
14       in a locked box.
15             (c) Officials responsible for the enforcement of this section shall not
16       enter a residential dwelling solely for the purpose of determining com-
17       pliance with the provisions of this section.
18             (d) Evidence of a conviction for the violation of this statute shall not
19       be admissible in any civil action for the purpose of demonstrating any
20       aspect of comparative fault.
21             (e) Evidence of a conviction for a violation of this statute shall not be
22       considered by any insurance company as a reason for reducing, offsetting
23       or denying the payment of any amount due, or claimed to be due, under
24       any contract of insurance.
25             (f) Any person who violates the provisions of this section shall be
26       guilty of a class A, nonperson misdemeanor, unless the violation results
27       in injury to a person, in which case any person who violates the provisions
28       of this section shall be guilty of a severity level 5, person felony.
29             (g) This section shall be part of and supplemental to the Kansas crim-
30       inal code.
31        Sec.  2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
32       publication in the statute book.