January 20, 1999
YAROSLAVSKY UNVEILS ORDINANCE FOR COUNTY SALES BAN ON "SATURDAY NIGHT SPECIAL" JUNK GUNS
Board of Supervisors Chairman Zev Yaroslavsky, joined by Sheriff Lee Baca and West Hollywood City Councilmember Paul Koretz, today unveiled a draft ordinance to impose a Countywide ban on the sale of "Saturday Night Specials" and other so-called "junk guns."
Yaroslavsky said the ordinance will be scheduled for consideration on February 2, 1999 at the Board’s next regular agenda meeting.
"Two years ago, as part of a comprehensive gun-control package I sponsored, our Board gave preliminary approval to this concept in an effort to curb the violence and crime associated with the easy availability and indiscriminate use of guns in our community," Yaroslavsky said. "Last month, after years of delays and legal appeals by the gun lobby, the state Supreme Court upheld such an ordinance enacted by the City of West Hollywood, and cleared the way for other cities and counties to act for the safety of their constituents. Today, we keep our promise. The opportunity to pick up a cheap gun is an opportunity to commit a crime, and I promise that we will deny criminals that opportunity once and for all."
Yaroslavsky praised Koretz as the driving force behind the West Hollywood gun-control effort.
Yaroslavsky noted that "Saturday Night Specials" are usually made of inexpensive and low-grade materials.
"They’re too imprecise for sport, and too unreliable for self-protection," Yaroslavsky said. "But they happen to be just perfect for committing crimes."
According to the latest figures from the County’s Injury and Violence Prevention Program, 954 - or 77% of the County’s total homicides in 1997 - were firearm-related. In addition, preliminary 1998 data from the Coroner’s office reveals some 1,198 firearm-related deaths in Los Angeles County, including 770 homicides and 422 suicides.
Yaroslavsky’s earlier gun-control package included an ordinance to crack down on unlicensed dealers, which in its first few months of enforcement slashed the number of scofflaw gun dealers by nearly a third; the launch of a study to examine the relationship between gun violence and other social pathologies like substance abuse and domestic violence; and a motion advocating relaxation of state law that prevents communities from adopting stronger gun-control measures than those enacted by the state.
Yaroslavsky said that taken together, "these measures send a powerful message to all law-abiding residents - and everyone else - that we in Los Angeles County are taking action to ensure the protection and safety of our constituents."
A copy of the "Saturday Night Special" ordinance is attached.
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