State Democrats Take Aim Again at Saturday Night Specials

SACRAMENTO —  Now that they are back in control of both legislative houses, Democratic lawmakers are trying again to enact tough laws designed to outlaw or restrict the circulation of cheap handguns, the so-called Saturday night specials widely blamed for so much of California’s violent crime.

But house majorities may not be enough. As in years past, a split is already apparent between Democrats from big cities, most of whom support gun control, and others, mostly from more rural parts of the state, who oppose it. Urban areas--Los Angeles and its nearby cities in particular--have sought ways, with Sacramento’s help, to rid the streets of the easily concealed weapons.

A Saturday night special is generally described as a gun made of inexpensive metal alloys, with a short barrel of about three inches that looks and functions like a semiautomatic pistol, as opposed to a revolver, and retails for as low as $50.

As in previous years, the legislation targeting the guns takes a couple of approaches--neither successful so far.

One set of bills would institute a statewide ban of the weapons. Other legislation would free local governments to enact their own prohibitions at least for the most severe crackdowns, an avenue now blocked by state law.

But there is no assurance that any of the legislation will find its way to Gov. Pete Wilson’s desk--and the stopper is not solely the often cited power of the gun lobby.

Besides Republicans fundamentally opposed to preventing citizens’ access to firearms, other doubtful votes include Democrats from parts of the state where guns are popular among the law-abiding--and voting--public.

Authors of key gun control bills admit as much, including Assembly Majority Leader Antonio Villaraigosa (D-Los Angeles), who says he is holding up an Assembly floor vote on a measure he wrote until he can count on the 41 votes needed for passage.

Villaraigosa’s bill would repeal the state’s authority to prohibit cities and counties from regulating gun licensing and permitting, putting “decision-making authority back where it belongs--in the hands of local authorities,” he said.

Assemblyman Mike Machado, a Central Valley Democrat, is typical of the more skeptical legislators from rural areas of the state. He cannot support blanket measures relinquishing state authority to all cities and counties, Machado said. Other Democrats still wrestling with the issue have privately expressed similar concerns.

From both sides of the Assembly aisle have come objections to the specter of different gun laws applying in different cities, making compliance hard on citizens and enforcement difficult for police and sheriffs’ departments.

In the state Senate, where past gun control measures have fared better, sentiment is stronger to grant local jurisdictions the authority to clamp down on Saturday night specials. A driving force is Sen. Richard Polanco (D-Los Angeles), who has introduced two tough restriction bills.

The governor’s office, however, could be another barrier.

A Wilson spokesman said the governor considers it “problematic” to turn over gun control to local authorities in a state as large and diverse as California, but that Wilson is watching closely to see what final forms the various bills will take.

Theoretically, according to several analysts, if bills such as Villaraigosa’s are enacted, cities and counties could slap absolute bans on the mere possession of firearms.

Steve Helsley, a lobbyist for the National Rifle Assn., declared the Villaraigosa bill, which the NRA strongly opposes, “would allow a city to ban the private possession of privately owned firearms--in your home.”

But there is little evidence to show that cities would go that far.

Los Angeles City Councilman Mike Feuer--a leading advocate for stronger gun control--said tougher local ordinances could go a long way toward disarming criminals.

“You can imagine a whole spectrum of things . . . that [the city] could do that don’t currently exist under state law,” he said.

As an example, he said, Los Angeles could pass an ordinance allowing people to buy only one gun per month, putting a stop to those who buy guns by the gross and sell them to criminals. Such controls are proposed at the state level as well.

“That alone,” Feuer said, “has contributed significantly to the flow of illegal weapons in our neighborhoods.”

Feuer said he is not advocating controls “at the level that the NRA is attempting to portray.”

However, he said, after incidents like the furious gun battle Feb. 28 in which two heavily armed robbers were killed and 17 police officers and civilians were wounded outside a North Hollywood bank, “there is a real clamoring for rules like zero tolerance for weapons violators.”

Mary Leigh Blek of Mission Viejo, who co-founded Orange County Citizens Against Gun Violence after her son Matthew, 21, was killed in New York in 1994 by teenagers armed with a Saturday night special, said such guns “should be banned by every city in the state . . . and a lot of people are looking to Sacramento to see what happens.”

Assemblyman Jack Scott (D-Altadena), another parent who lost a son to gunfire, agrees, but takes what many consider a more politically acceptable approach than allowing cities to legislate open-ended forms of gun control.

Scott is the author of a bill that would clarify state law making it permissible for cities to curb the proliferation of Saturday night specials, but only by banning their sale--not by banning possession of existing weapons.

Los Angeles, West Hollywood and at least six other Southland cities--among 28 cities and three counties statewide--have enacted ordinances banning the sale of such guns, according to a survey by gun control advocates Handgun Control Inc. Los Angeles County is drafting a similar ordinance.

But the authority of local governments to legislate in this area is disputed--becoming grist for lawsuits.

West Hollywood faced such a lawsuit last year by the NRA-affiliated California Rifle and Pistol Assn.

A Los Angeles County Superior Court upheld the city’s contention that state law did not bar its ordinance banning sale of Saturday night specials. But the fight is not over. The gun association has appealed the decision to the California Court of Appeal, arguing--as it did in the lower court--that state law “implies” that cities cannot enact such laws.

Scott’s bill seeks to remove the ambiguity, and supporters predict that on the Assembly floor they can pick up more votes than Villaraigosa’s measure can muster. However, Scott’s bill, because it is intended to take immediate effect, needs more votes for passage: 54 instead of the simple majority of 41.

Assemblyman Louis Caldera (D-Los Angeles), a strong gun control advocate and the author of a bill to ban “junk guns” statewide, predicted that, eventually, Saturday night specials will be banned in California.

A ban may be “an uphill battle this year [but] the tide has really turned on this issue,” he said.

The day will come, he said, when legislators refusing to support “modest and reasonable measures” to curb cheap guns used disproportionately in violent crimes will pay the price at the polls.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Anti-Handgun Bills

Bills in the Legislature that seek to ban or restrict Saturday night special handguns:

* SB 500 by state Sen. Richard G. Polanco (D-Los Angeles) would prohibit manufacture and sale of Saturday night specials and call on attorney general to make a list of prohibited weapons. Scheduled for hearing before the Senate Public Safety Committee.

* SB 643 by Polanco would allow counties and cities to pass gun control ordinances tougher than state law. Before the Senate Public Safety Committee.

* Similarly, AB 136 by Assembly Majority Leader Antonio Villaraigosa (D-Los Angeles) would repeal state law preventing cities and counties from enacting their own gun ordinances. Awaits Assembly floor vote.

* AB 247 by Assemblyman Jack Scott (D-Altadena) would allow local governments to ban the sale of certain guns, including Saturday night specials, clarifying disputed sections of state law. Awaits Assembly floor vote.

* AB 488 by Assemblyman Louis Caldera (D-Los Angeles) would prohibit possession, manufacture and distribution of “junk guns” that lack certain safety features. Before the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

* SB 513 by Sen. Tom Hayden (D-Los Angeles) would limit handgun purchases to one per month, increase penalties for illegally carrying a concealed weapon and limit bullets a gun could hold. Before Senate Public Safety Committee.

* AB 532 by Assemblyman Wally Knox (D-Los Angeles) also would restrict handgun purchases to one per month. Before the Assembly Appropriations Committee.