The Senate Judiciary Committee of the Virginia legislature rejected a bill introduced by Gov. Ralph Northam that would have made allowing a gun to fall into the hands of a child a felony.

As drafted, Northam’s bill would have mandated that anyone who “recklessly leave[s] a loaded, unsecured firearm” in a place where it could be accessed by a child be charged with a felony. Current Virginia law charges people found responsible in such situations with a misdemeanor.

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