Sierra Madre Council Votes to Ban Sale of Saturday Night Specials

With the unanimous support of the City Council, Sierra Madre has become the first city in the San Gabriel Valley to ban the sale of inexpensive, cheaply made handguns known as Saturday night specials.

Following on the heels of its decision to ban drive-through businesses to preserve the small-town atmosphere, the council Tuesday gave preliminary approval to a ban on the sale of the cheap firearms.

City officials describe the measure as preventive because the tiny bastion of Americana with 10,767 residents does not have any firearms dealers.

But officials said they decided that they needed to be part of the effort to cut off the supply of such guns.

The council’s action was spurred by a resolution calling for a ban on the sale of such weapons unanimous approved last week by the board of the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments, the region’s 30-member city association, said Councilman James Hester, the author of the ban.

“It’s not a ban on handguns, it’s not a ban on the sale of handguns. It’s specifically a ban on Saturday night specials--the weapon of choice for most gang violence,” said Hester, Sierra Madre’s representative on the council of governments. “It’s a dangerous weapon not only to the victim, but the user because of high incidence of misfires and it is not designed to protect anyone.”

Hester said the ordinance he introduced is similar to ones on the books in Los Angeles, West Hollywood and two dozen other cities statewide.

No members of the public opposed the gun law at the meeting.

However, a similar law in West Hollywood is under legal attack by the National Rifle Assn. and California Rifle and Pistol Assn.

Hester said no one should interpret the vote by the generally conservative council as a move against legitimate gun owners.

“We’re conservative in Sierra Madre, but it is not blind conservatism. We think about the issues,” Hester said.

Under the law, it would be a misdemeanor to sell any weapons that fail to meet minimum construction standards for metal strengths and safety features. Violators can be fined up to $1,000 and sentenced to up to six months in jail.

The ban on sales will go into effect next month if approved at the next council meeting in two weeks.

The Monterey Park and Pasadena city councils are expected to consider similar bans next month.

Gun control advocates Thursday praised the move by Sierra Madre.

“Sierra Madre has sent a clear message that it is concerned about protecting its residents and their children from these guns,” said Susan Shaw, executive director of Los Angeles-based Women Against Gun Violence.