As our Club prepares for the upcoming showing of Robert Greenwald’s most recent documentary, “Making a Killing,” I was reading about our state Senate’s approval of eleven gun bills in response to the San Bernadino shootings. As you will all recall on December 2nd, 2015 two attackers killed 14 people in San Bernadino as they were attending an office Christmas party.
According to Senate President Pro Tem, Kevin de Leon (D – Los Angeles), 30,000 people are killed by guns every year in the United States. Gun violence has reached epidemic proportions! The San Bernadino shootings also resulted in a separate gun control initiative by Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsome that is expected to quality for the November 8th ballot.
Two of the bills approved by the state Senate would ban the manufacture and sale of semiautomatic rifles with detachable magazines, as well as semiautomatic, center-fire rifles with “bullet buttons.” A bullet button is best described as a recessed button that allows the removal of the magazine when pressed by a sharp object. Those already in possession of such guns would have to register them with the state as assault rifles.
Another measure would ban the possession of large capacity magazines, i.e. those holding more than 10 bullets. Another bill written by De Leon would require those buying ammunition to present identification, which would be used by the seller to check to make sure that the buyer is not a felon or otherwise prohibited from possessing guns. This bill is supported by the Los Angeles Police Chief, Charlie Beck and LA County Sheriff, Jim McDonnell as a way to make sure
criminals do not get ammunition.
Other bills would require owners of homemade guns to get a serial number for the firearms, register them with the state and undergo a background check. Another would mandate that gun owners report lost or stolen firearms to the authorities within five days of discovery that they are missing.
Other provisions include limiting lending of firearms to specified family members and establishing a Firearm Violence Research Center at one of the UC campuses to study potential policies to reduce shooting deaths and injuries. Please be sure to reach out to your assembly member ASAP as there will be a vote on this in the assembly before the end of June. Let’s make California a safer place for all!