December
16 , 2004---San Francisco supervisors today proposed a ballot
referendum for a complete ban on handguns within the city.
If approved by voters, the ban would prohibit
the possession of handguns in homes and businesses. It would also
ban the sale, manufacture, and distribution of firearms and ammunition
in San Francisco.
Bill Barnes, an aide to San Francisco
supervisor Chris Daley, said the measure was intended to reduce
the number of homicides in the city. There have been 86 homicides
this year in the city, compared with 70 in 2003.
Speaking to the San Francisco Chronicle,
Barnes told the newspaper, "The hope is twofold, that officers
will have an opportunity to interact with folks and if they have
a handgun, that will be reason enough to confiscate it. Second,
we know that for even law-abiding folks who own guns, the rates
of suicide and mortality are substantially higher. So while just
perceived to be a crime thing, we think there is a wide benefit
to limiting the number of guns in the city."
Police officers, security guards, and
members of the military on duty would not be subject to the ban.
Nor would others "actually employed and engaged in protecting
and preserving property or life within the scope of his or her
employment," as the proposal reads.
Five supervisors--Michela Alioto-Pier,
Tom Ammiano, Bevan Duffy, Matt Gonzalez, and Daly--submitted the
proposal to the Department of Elections. That number was one more
than required to have the intitiative placed on the ballot without
getting signatures from registered voters. The next election is
in November of 2005, although Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has
talked about having a special election earlier next year.
It is unknown how many San Francisco residents
own handguns. There are three licensed gun dealers in the city,
and ten persons who have a permit to carry a concealed weapon.
California has a pre-emption law which
effectively prohibits municipalities from enacting gun control
ordinances. Supporters of the bill, however, say that they believe
it is crafted so as not to be in conflict with state law, and
they are confident it will survive any court challenges.
If the proposal becomes law, residents
of the city would have 90 days to turn in their handguns. It would
also make San Francisco the second major city in the US to have
a total ban on handguns. Washington D.C. in 1976 enacted a similar
ban. Since then, DC has consistently ranked in the top five cities
for homicides. DC, whose population is roughly 70% of that of
San Francisco, has had as many as 600 or more homicides in a single
year.
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