Gun Injuries in San Diego & California Gun Safety Laws
Tragic news rocked Southern California in April, when Nasim Aghdam shot and wounded three people at YouTube’s campus in San Bruno before killing herself. The shooter allegedly had a grudge against the company, and said it discriminated against her videos, cheating her out of views and revenue. Authorities say there was no indication that she was singling anyone out at the company as she fired, but they still have questions about how she obtained the 9-millimeter weapon she used to commit the atrocities that day.
Some public safety officials believe that California’s strict gun control laws prevented the YouTube incident from becoming an even greater tragedy.
California Gun Safety Laws
California is home to some of the toughest gun laws in the nation. This seems to correlate with the number of reported gun-related injuries and deaths, as the state also has some of the lowest gun deaths per capita in the nation (ranked 43 among 50).
An independent gun control advocacy group and research firm, The Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, ranks California number one when it comes to strength of gun control laws. It considers factors such as background checks, concealed weapons laws, restriction of military-grade weapons, large capacity magazines, and access to weapons for those convicted of domestic abuse. The state also prohibits those convicted of violent misdemeanors or hate crimes from owning guns for a year following the conviction.
Additionally, California was one of the first states to enact a law that allows relatives to petition the courts to temporarily remove guns from a person they fear has become a danger to him or herself or others.
Concealed Carry Laws in San Diego
San Diego, like many other areas of the state, also enacts strict gun control law, particularly regarding concealed weapons carry. According to the San Diego Sheriff’s Department, a person may receive a CCW if the department has sufficient proof of the following:
- That the person has sound moral character
- That he or she has good cause for the issuance of the license
- The person is a resident of the county or a city within it, or he or she works principally within the county or a city within it
- The person completes a mandated training course as outlined in the California Penal code
The sheriff’s office determines all these points on a case-by-case basis. An applicant for a CCW should be able to show just cause for the permit – in other words, show how he or she might differ from the general population and be in harm’s way. A person cannot simply write “personal protection” or “self-defense” on the application – there must be a compelling reason for the permit. Examples of just cause for a CCW might include:
- Evidence that another party might attempt to do bodily harm to the person applying for the license.
- The applicant works in a business that naturally puts him or her in harm’s way, more so than the general population.
- An applicant’s business or occupation involves the transfer of large sums of money.
- An applicant requires personal protection because of a threat he or she can substantiate.
- The person applying for the license engages in an occupation or business so hazardous that no other means of protection, other than a concealed weapon, can protect him or her from on-the-job threats.
An applicant for a CCW in San Diego must be able to substantiate, through verifiable sources, that a threat to personal safety exists. General concerns about a person’s welfare or personal safety are not enough. Using concealed weapons restrictions as tight as these helps reduce the amount of gun-related violence, both in San Diego and throughout California.