Californians aim for Colorado-Style gun control Recalls

Californians aim for Colorado-Style gun control Recalls

California Governor Jerry Brown’s had a mixed reaction to several pieces of gun control legislation that recently hit his desk:

California Gov. Jerry Brown split the difference Friday on the pile of gun-control bills sitting on his desk, opting to sign five but veto seven, including a bill that would have banned the sale of many popular hunting rifles.

“The state of California already has some of the strictest gun laws in the country, including bans on military-style assault rifles and high-capacity ammunition magazines,” said Mr. Brown in his veto message. “While the author’s intent is to strengthen these restrictions, this bill goes much farther by banning any semi-automatic rifle with a detachable magazine.”

Yet, Brown still managed to sign bills that prohibit the use of lead ammunition for hunting, ban kits that convert ammunition magazines to hold more than 10 rounds, make it a crime to leave a loaded gun in an area where it may be accessed by a minor without permission, and a bill that prohibits gun ownership by people who make serious threats to psychoanalysts.

Dawn Wildman, President of San Diego’s SoCal Tax Revolt Coalition, noted that without the help if the National Rifle Association working with Californians, the results could have been much more restrictive. She cites a list of items that were defeated before hitting Brown’s desk, including:

Assembly Bill 174: This bill would have banned the possession of any firearm, magazine, or ammunition that was previously “grandfathered in” by previous legislation.

Assembly Bill 108: This bill would have placed criminal liability on gun owners for failing to lock their firearms away every time they left the house, regardless of whether anyone would be present in the home.

In response to the legislation that did garner Brown’s signature, a California Assemblyman is using Colorado’s recent recall elections as a model for sending a message to elected advocates of excessive gun restrictions.

California gun-rights advocates, emboldened by last month’s successful Colorado recall vote, announced Thursday that they plan to target vulnerable Democratic legislators for recall over their support for sweeping gun-control legislation.

“Right now, in the state of California, the Second Amendment is on the most fragile ground it’s ever been on,” said Assemblyman Tim Donnelly at a press conference at the state capitol in Sacramento.

The recall effort is being organized by the newly formed group Free California with the support of Gun Owners of California and several Republican state legislators, including Mr. Donnelly, who’s also running for the 2014 Republican gubernatorial nomination.

Two of the candidates being targeted hail form San Diego: Recently elected state Senator, Ben Huseo (voted in during a special election this March when Juan Vargas was elected to Congress) and Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez. Other targeted politicos include Sen. Norma Torres of Pomona, and Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva of Fullerton (who is in a district with nearly equal numbers of registered Democrats and Republicans).

Via San Jose Mercury News:

Quirk-Silva seems unconcerned with the recall effort:

She said in a statement that as a teacher and parent, she “is proud of her support for gun safety laws that will make California’s schools and communities safer.” Gonzalez said she would “welcome the opportunity to debate the issue’s impact on our community.”

I suspected many California Second Amendment advocates are looking forward to that debate as well.

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