Opinion | Firearms are the only constitutionally protected consumer product

Regarding Ann Brown’s Jan 17 Tuesday Opinion commentary, “Guns are consumer products. They should be regulated as such.”:

Firearms manufactured for civilian purchase and use are indeed “consumer products,” but reasoning that they should be regulated in the same manner as strollers or bicycles is a gross oversimplification. Firearms are already strictly regulated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Owning and operating a refrigerator or crib is not specifically enshrined in the Constitution, as is the right to keep and bear arms. This distinction explains why Congress created the exemption when product safety advocates were suggesting a complete ban on ammunition as a “safety” measure.

Second, Ms. Brown proposed mandatory locks for some firearms but proposed an outright ban on others (ie semiautomatic, center-fire rifles?). If this were truly about safety, she would not advocate for a ban on assault weapons. The AR-15 platform rifle is the most popular rifle in the United States. Instead, the proposal appears as a Trojan horse for gun control and confiscation.

Last, it is worth pointing out that unintentional firearm deaths in the United States were down about 35 percent between 2000 and 2019. Though more progress is needed, this trend is seen as a positive development by the firearms industry, which has spearheaded a national effort to voluntarily ensure firearms are properly locked and stored. This effort is led by National Shooting Sports Foundation’s Project Childsafe, which partners with law enforcement coast to coast and has distributed more than 40 million firearm safety kits, which include gun locks. These efforts are proven real solutions instead of “mandatory storage laws,” which are nearly impossible to enforce and unconstitutional.

Lawrence G Keane, Washington

The writer is senior vice president and general counsel to the National Shooting Sports Foundation.