San Jose Chooses to Punish the Law-Abiding for the Actions of Criminals

by
posted on July 5, 2021
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **
24937031803_62822d19cd_h.jpg
Mitchell Weinstock courtesy Flickr

The San Jose City Council voted unanimously to approve some of the most-overreaching gun-control measures this country has ever seen.

The nation’s 10th-largest city will now require every gun owner to have “liability insurance” coverage for firearms ownership. Not satisfied with one overreaching measure, the city will also require gun owners to pay an annual fee to “relieve the public cost of gun violence.”

“While the Second Amendment certainly protects the right to own a gun, it does not mandate that we subsidize as taxpayers the possession of these guns,” said San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo. 

This mayor thinks non-gun owning taxpayers are subsidizing those who legally exercise their Second Amendment rights? It takes a deep dive into an ideological rabbit hole to understand that thinking. “More guns, equals less crime” is not just a catchphrase popularized by John Lott’s 1998 book. The fact that a legally armed citizenry is safer is well documented and can be seen by anyone who compares inner-city Chicago to nearby towns just outside the city.

Law-abiding gun owners are hardly at fault for the actions of criminals who obtain and use firearms illegally. Criminals also won’t pay San Jose’s new taxes on firearms.

“This is an attempt to punish law-abiding gun owners for owning a lawful product by making them pay for the activities of criminals. Taxing lawful ownership and requiring insurance will do nothing to reduce gun violence, which is often committed by repeat criminals who will not be paying the fees or obtaining insurance. It simply increases the cost for law-abiding citizens to exercise a constitutional right,” reported the NRA Institute for Legislative Action.

Already, California has some of the most-burdensome gun-control laws in the nation. It is one of eight states that allow concealed carry only on a “may-issue” basis, and many of its cities, such as San Jose, are home to the most-restrictive gun laws in the nation.

Sadly, just as Mayor Liccardo blames guns for the actions of criminals, Bidens’s White House Press Secretary has recently made these same egregious, untrue claims.

This misguided policy makes it even more difficult, both financially and practically, for gun owners to exercise their rights. This, in particular, is an attack on the poor and under-privileged in San Jose.

Latest

House Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Rep. Jason Smith
House Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Rep. Jason Smith

The Greatest Second Amendment Victory in a Century

On July 4, 2025, Americans celebrated not only our nation’s independence, but also the restoration of our constitutional Second Amendment rights becoming unconstrained by burdensome and arbitrary fees.

Opening Salvo | More Evidence That Gun-Control Groups are Freaking Out

With the Trump administration’s law-and-order push showing America’s crime problem is clearly not the fault of lawfully armed citizens, gun-control groups are freaking out.

John Rich has a Song for Armed Citizens

John Rich's latest song is "The Righteous Hunter." It is a moving tune about standing up to stop those with evil intentions. It is a song for lawfully armed citizens.

This Department of Education Grant Could Change Things

The University of Wyoming’s Firearms Research Center has been awarded a nearly $1 million grant by the U.S. Department of Education to develop a nationwide program on the origins, meaning and implications of the Second Amendment.

From the Editor | Charlie Kirk Lived for Freedom

“Give me liberty, or give me death,” are the immortal words of Patrick Henry spoken on March 23, 1775, to the Second Virginia Convention in Richmond, Va. His impassioned words were a call to arms against British tyranny.  

Ninth Circuit to Revisit Background Checks on Ammo Case

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has granted rehearing en banc in Rhode v. Bonta—a case backed by the National Rifle Association and California Rifle and Pistol Association. 

Interests



Get the best of America's 1st Freedom delivered to your inbox.