San Francisco passes new gun law

[wld_team]

08/02/2007 02:36:47 PM PDT


SAN FRANCISCO—A new city law now requires all guns in homes to have a trigger lock or to be stored in a locked container.
Mayor Gavin Newsom signed the measure into law Wednesday. It also prohibits the sale or possession of firearms on city property and requires the city's six licensed gun dealers to submit their inventory to the police chief every six months, according to Newsom's office.

Nathan Ballard, the mayor's spokesman, said the inventory provision will allow authorities to keep track of guns sold in the city. He said the restriction on guns in homes is the first of its kind in the nation and will help prevent gun violence.

"People steal guns and kids accidentally hurt themselves with guns in the home," he said.

The city has 50,000 legally registered guns and "untold" numbers of illegal guns, Ballard said.

In 2006, a court struck-down a voter-approved ban on handgun possession by city residents. The National Rifle Association successfully argued the city did not have the authority to pass the ordinance under state law.

The ban would have limited handgun possession to law enforcement officers and those who need guns as part of their professions.

Ballard said the new law was created in consultation with legal scholars. City officials believe they are on solid legal ground, he said.