Guns

The state attorney general's office filed a suit Friday against a prominent San Fernando Valley animal rights group, saying it illegally used more than $400,000 in charitable donations to build an arsenal of assault-style weapons, to make high-risk loans and to pay personal expenses. Van Nuys-based Mercy Crusade Inc. used charitable donations improperly under state regulations for a tax-exempt nonprofit organization, according to Andi Thomas, spokeswoman for the attorney general's office.

The state attorney general's office Thursday filed a civil suit against a prominent San Fernando Valley animal-rights group, saying it illegally used more than $400,000 in charitable donations to build an arsenal of assault-style weapons, make high-risk loans and to pay personal expenses. Van Nuys-based Mercy Crusade Inc.

Gun sales in California plunged by a record 31% last year, to the lowest level in 18 years, Atty. Gen. Dan Lungren reported Wednesday. It is the second yearly drop, but follows major increases after the 1992 Los Angeles riots. Although explanations varied, Lungren suggested that the market for guns in California, one of the nation's biggest consumers of firearms, may have bottomed out. "It is conceivable that 2.

Gun sales in California plunged by a record 31% last year, to the lowest level in 18 years, Atty. Gen. Dan Lungren reported Wednesday. It is the second yearly drop, but follows major increases after the 1992 Los Angeles riots. Although explanations varied, Lungren suggested that the market for guns in California, one of the nation's biggest consumers of firearms, might have bottomed out. "It is conceivable that 2.

Following in the footsteps of West Hollywood, a key Los Angeles City Council committee recommended Monday drafting an ordinance that bans the sale of cheap handguns known as "Saturday Night Specials." West Hollywood adopted a "Saturday Night Special" ban last month but has postponed putting it into effect to give officials more time to compile a list of weapons that will be outlawed.

Santa Ana Police Capt. Dan McCoy told two dozen members of a gun control group this week that a $350,000 federal grant will help police crack down on rogue gun dealers and trace the source of illegal firearms. Santa Ana's Police Department was one of three law enforcement agencies nationwide to win Firearms Trafficking Program grants. Santa Ana officials expect to use the money to reduce the number of guns distributed across Orange County, McCoy said.

After unanimously agreeing to ban Saturday night specials last month, the Sierra Madre City Council backtracked Tuesday night, voting down an ordinance to bar the local sale of the small, cheaply made handguns. Sierra Madre has no gun stores, but agreed to consider the law after the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments urged the 30 cities in the valley to pass bans modeled on ordinances adopted by the cities of Los Angeles and West Hollywood.

Grocery carts full of rifles and handguns and sawed-off shotguns sat nearby as defensive tackle Chester McGlockton handed out Raider tickets and softly thanked each person. "Bless you," he said as gang members, proud fathers and septuagenarians turned over everything from Swedish army rifles to Nazi-era handguns to tiny pistols that fit comfortably in the purses of society women.

Drunk on beer, the woman sparked an argument with several men at the Pickwick Pub in Woodland Hills. "Do you want to fight with a girl?" witnesses recalled her yelling. "Come on. Come and get me!" A shoving match ensued in the parking lot and the woman pulled out a pistol, accidentally firing at a nearby brick wall as a bouncer wrestled away the weapon. The bar owner told the woman that if she wanted the gun back, she would have to pick it up from the cops. "I am a cop," she replied.

West Covina has become the first city in the San Gabriel Valley to ban Saturday night specials, and several other municipalities are waiting to follow suit after a coalition of local governments pledged to outlaw the small, cheaply made handguns. In October, the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments, which represents 30 cities, voted to enact bans on Saturday night specials similar to those in Los Angeles and West Hollywood. All 15 representatives at the meeting voted for the proposal.