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Updated: February 11, 2026 @ 6:29 am
Editor,
I am so grateful for your publication of Rudy Espinoza Murray’s guest perspective “The one choice you can’t afford to make.” Mr. Espinoza Murray strongly stated the reasons why no one can afford to stand by and do nothing while gun violence ravages our country.
We must address the root causes of gun violence — poverty, hate, gun culture, unaddressed mental health, and the outsized power of the gun lobby — but we must also use tools like the Red Flag law (which can temporarily remove guns from someone at risk), universal background checks on all gun sales, (not all states require a background check on all gun transfers), and safe storage ordinances.
This last measure can help keep unsecured guns out of the hands of children who may unintentionally fire them, can keep a teenager in crisis from making an irreversible decision, and can keep guns from being stolen in a break-in and used for criminal purposes or sold to a prohibited person.
San Mateo County and most of its cities have passed a Safe Storage ordinance. The remaining ones should, too.
Leah Elkins
Menlo Park
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(1) comment
Leah – thank you for your letter. I consider my Safe Storage location to be my residence (a locked container). Not only does it keep my guns and firearms from the general public, it also keeps my other potentially fatal weapons locked up. Weapons such as knives, screwdrivers, any other “pointy” things including pens and pencils, baseball bats, golf clubs, etc. I guess you can consider me to be more than responsible. And fortunately, should there ever be any break ins, all of these self-defense weapons are easily accessed. As for supposed unintentional use, as long as you’ve taught your kids how to safely handle guns, knives, and all the other potentially fatal objects in the home (and even in the driveway or the garage), you’ve been a responsible parent.
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