California bills on firearms, violence clear hurdles
SACRAMENTO — State lawmakers advanced measures related to firearms and violence Thursday, including two introduced after the mass killing at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut.
One would require gun owners to keep their firearms locked away if they live with someone prohibited by law from using guns. The bill provides for sentences as long as three years and a fine of $10,000 for anyone convicted of allowing such a person access to guns if death or great bodily injury resulted.
The measure, SB 363, by Sen. Roderick D. Wright (D-Inglewood), was opposed by the California Attorneys for Criminal Justice. The group argued that many citizens have firearms for protection and that keeping them locked up “defeats this purpose.”
Senators also approved SB 552, by Sen. Ronald S. Calderon (D-Montebello), which would allow school districts to teach violence awareness in high school, including lessons on the effect of violent films and video games.
“Through education, I believe we can make young minds more aware of how they and our society are affected by the seemingly endless exposure to violence,” Calderon told his fellow lawmakers.
Both bills now go to the Assembly, which passed a proposal Thursday to expand a state ban on the use of lead ammunition for hunting wildlife.
The state already prohibits the use of lead ammunition for hunting big game and coyotes in places where California condors live. Activists say the birds can be poisoned when they eat the carcasses of animals shot with lead.
Assemblyman Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood) wants to extend the ban to all wildlife throughout California.
“We’re hoping we have a more vibrant and plentiful wildlife population in the state,” he said.
Jennifer Fearing, senior state director for the Humane Society of the United States, said there’s no reason to use toxic lead for hunting.
“We’ve taken it out of paint, gasoline, pencils, toys,” Fearing said. “It doesn’t need to be in ammunition, either.”
Rendon’s measure, AB 711, now goes to the state Senate. If approved and signed by Gov. Jerry Brown, it would be phased in over two years, beginning in July 2014.
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