[JURIST] The Los Angeles City Council [official website] on Tuesday passed a handgun storage law [Council File 14-1553] requiring owners to either lock guns away or have the trigger disabled when not in reach. The law is “aimed at curbing suicides and accidental shootings,” and it is anticipated that the law will “keep guns safe during robberies” as they are very easy to sell on the black market or use in subsequent crimes [KABC report], said Councilman Paul Krekorian [official profile], a strong proponent for the law. The law has received some backlash from the National Rifle Association [advocacy website], which claims that the law is “reckless” and will do little to protect children [press release]. The last day for action from the mayor is November 6.

Gun control [JURIST backgrounder] and the Second Amendment [text] continue to be controversial topics in the US. Earlier this month Maine’s revised concealed carry law went into effect [JURIST report] allowing legal gun owners to carry concealed weapons without a permit. In September the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued a mixed ruling [JURIST report] on DC gun laws, ultimately upholding six and striking down four controversial elements of the Firearms Registration Amendment Act and the Firearms Amendment Act of 2012. The laws were created in response to the Supreme Court striking down [opinion, PDF] a DC law prohibiting firearm ownership six years ago. In July US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter ordered a review [JURIST report] of military recruitment office security policies in the wake of a shooting at a Chattanooga, Tennessee Navy-Marine reserve center. Last December the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled [JURIST report] that a law prohibiting individuals who have been committed to a mental institution for any amount of time from possessing a firearm is unconstitutional under the Second Amendment.