Subdeacon Joe Posted September 24, 2013 Share Posted September 24, 2013 From the Fresno Bee. Gov. Brown should sign five sensible measures passed by the Legislature. The2013 legislative session began a few days after the massacre at SandyHook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. It ended shortly before theshootings at the Navy Yard in Washington, D.C. In between, there were more than 800 gun-related deaths in California, and many times that number nationwide. Congresshas proven itself unable to approve even the most modest gun safetylegislation. But California legislators passed several sensiblemeasures. Gov. Jerry Brown should sign them into law. At the topof the list is Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg's Senate Bill374, which seeks to ban future sales of semi-automatic rifles that canaccept detachable magazines. California led the nation in 1989when Gov. George Deukmejian, a Republican, signed a bill banning assaultweapons after the Cleveland Elementary School shooting in Stockton. Eversince, gun manufacturers have found ways to evade the restrictions, andlawmakers have responded by trying to tighten the law. Steinberg's billwould end the argument by banning future sales in California ofsemi-automatic guns that can accept detachable clips, which can beemptied and rapidly replaced. As was hammered home Monday by theshooting in Washington that killed 12 people, not including the shooter,a deranged gunman can quickly do horrendous damage. Sen. LoisWolk's SB 755 is a more narrow but significant measure intended to helpkeep all firearms out of the hands of people who have shown throughtheir actions that they are not responsible enough to own them. TheDavis Democrat's bill would expand the list of people who areprohibited from owning firearms to include individuals who have repeatalcohol-related arrests, including driving under the influence. Peoplewho are directed by a judge to undergo intensive treatment for mentalillness also would lose gun ownership rights for a period of time. Othergun safety measures deserving of Brown's signature include SB 683 bySen. Marty Block, D-San Diego, which would require all gun purchasers toshow they know how to safely handle firearms, and SB 299 by Sen. MarkDeSaulnier, D-Concord, seeking to require owners to report lost orstolen guns within seven days. AB 180 by Assemblyman Rob Bonta,D-Oakland, would allow Oakland to impose gun control measures that aretougher than those adopted by the state. That city's crime statisticsreflect the urgency of the measure. There have been 2,095 robberies withuse of a firearm in Oakland so far this year, compared with 865 in2010. No law can stop all gun violence. California lawmakerscannot limit gun sales in other states. But Brown has it within hispower to take reasonable steps to enhance public safety. He shouldn'tlet the opportunity pass. Read more here: http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/09/21/3508777/editorial-gun-bills-must-become.html#storylink=cpy Link to comment
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