SACRAMENTO — As the recent spate of mass killings has made clear, even California's much-touted gun-control laws can do little to keep firearms and ammunition away from criminals bent on murder.
State laws that ban assault weapons and limit handgun purchases, as well as tough penalties for gun-related crimes, did not stop Joseph Ferguson, the 20-year-old Sacramento security guard who authorities say stalked and killed five people last weekend.
By the end of Ferguson's alleged two-day attack, police said, they had recovered two assault rifles, three handguns, a shotgun and a gym bag jammed with banana-style ammunition magazines. Officials said the assault rifles, including a Chinese-made AK-47, appeared to have been obtained legally by Ferguson or his father before being converted into banned automatic weapons.
And a convicted felon who allegedly killed a sheriff's deputy in Santa Clarita last month was able to buy thousands of rounds of ammunition for his well-stocked home armory because the law does not require a background check for such purchases.
"Even with strong gun laws," said gun control advocate Luis Tolley, "there is nothing to prohibit anyone from accumulating an arsenal. There are laws, but there are still huge loopholes."
Edward E. Worley, lobbyist for the National Rifle Assn. in Sacramento, said new or expanded laws would be ineffective against incidents such as the weekend shootings.
"California already has 670 gun laws on the books as it is," Worley said. "There is nothing in any of the legislation currently under consideration that would have prevented this incident."
Worley also fiercely opposes any law that would count the number of weapons owned by individuals.
"How do you define an arsenal?" Worley said. "It's like saying people have too many golf clubs. I have a lot of rifles but each one of them is for a different purpose."
Assault rifles and other weapons banned in California are easily available in neighboring states. The sophistication and power of the weapons have also increased as gun manufacturers target the survivalist and paramilitary markets.
"There are a lot of law-abiding people who like to collect firearms who are not a problem," said Monty Holden, executive director of the California Organization of Police and Sheriffs. "But when they collect them with a siege mentality, it is eventually going to result in a huge battle or confrontation. The bad guys are much better armed than they were five, 10 years ago."
