Pasadena’s Courage In the Face of Guns

Credit the Pasadena City Council for at least trying to do what it can to curb gun violence within its city. The council members’ consideration of a law to restrict bullet sales is far more than most other local lawmakers are apparently ready to do. Not to mention all too many state or national politicians.

If passed--the seven-member council is expected to consider the ordinance at its meeting tonight--Pasadena’s bullet ordinance would be the first of its kind in the nation.

The proposed ordinance aims to curb the gun violence perpetrated by teen-agers, often on one another. Juveniles are already barred from purchasing ammunition; Pasadena’s proposal to monitor and restrict ammunition sales is a grim acknowledgment that under-age sales are common and that something, anything, must be done.

If passed, the law would require anyone who buys bullets in Pasadena to furnish identification with proof of age and to complete a registration form that would compile the type and amount of ammunition purchased and contain additional information on the buyer. These records, to be maintained by Pasadena police, could later prove helpful in solving gun-related crimes.

Pasadena’s proposal is a stark reflection of the utter desperation local officials feel in trying to curb gun violence. Pasadena police, like their counterparts throughout the region, are on the front lines in the war against street crime.

Yet if the cities are stuck with the problem, they are largely impotent to address the root causes, which include the widespread and largely unrestricted proliferation of guns. State preemption bars localities from enacting stronger gun laws than those passed by the Legislature. And to date, the gun lobby has ensured that precious little of substance has passed in Sacramento. So frightened and unprotected cities are left with two stark options: to make sensible but partial changes at the margins, like the proposed Pasadena bullet restriction, or to continue burying the dead.

The idea behind Pasadena’s proposal is not new. U.S. Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-N.Y.) has tried to persuade Congress to ban the sale of bullets for “Saturday night specials.” Efforts to curb the demand for ammunition, for example, through steep taxes on bullets, were also defeated.

Nor is Pasadena’s proposed ordinance a panacea. Juveniles may simply travel to neighboring cities to buy bullets, as critics were quick to point out. But as one local leader observed, if Pasadena acts, other cities may follow. What begins with one small step can indeed make a big difference. We applaud Pasadena for its responsibility, common sense and leadership.