Five years have passed since the massacre of 12 people – nine men and three women – at the Borderline Bar & Grill in Thousand Oaks, and authorities once again called to stop the senseless violence that has been unleashed in the United States and that has caused a cumulative total of more than 500 shootings so far in 2023.
On November 7, 2018, at approximately 11:18 p.m., Ian David Long, a United States Marine Corps veteran opened fire at the country-style bar on the west side.
The total death toll was 13, including the gunman, who committed suicide, and another 15 people were injured.
Investigators of the massacre detailed that Ian David Long was armed with a Glock 21 .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol that he had purchased legally with a Viridian X5L tactical weapon light and a laser sight, seven prohibited high-capacity magazines, a total of 190 bullets, a knife, ten smoke bombs and fireworks.
They detailed that the multiple murderer had had several encounters with students at California State University, Northridge, including one where a student allegedly told him that “anyone who joined the military deserved to be shot to death abroad,” which could have triggered his hatred towards other students.
“California will never forget the victims and survivors of this senseless shooting,” Izzy Gardon, spokesperson for Governor Gavin Newsom’s office, told La Opinión. “We will never rest in our determination to prevent these types of tragedies by advancing common sense gun safety measures.”
“red flag” law
According to Assemblyman Miguel Santiago, in California “red alert” laws could prevent many massacres.
“The governor [Gavin] “Newsom has done a good job to prevent more gun violence,” the legislator declared to La Opinión.
And, according to UC Davis researchers, in California the red flag law or AB 2870 has prevented at least 58 mass shootings in the last three years.
In 80% of the cases, the alleged gunmen showed signs of danger and their bad intentions to family or friends. They also use social networks and when their plans are discovered, these are the moments when the so-called “Firearms: Armed Violence Restraining Orders” law can be activated.
Assemblyman Miguel Santiago’s legislation authorizes a court to issue a gun violence restraining order and prohibit a person from purchasing or possessing a firearm or ammunition for a period of one to five years.
The restriction is subject to renewal for additional periods of one to five years if the individual poses a significant danger of self-injury or harm to another person by possessing a firearm and the order is necessary to prevent injury to self or others.
“To prevent and end the killings, the federal government has to take action,” Santiago said. “We have taken strong steps, but there are states where they will continue with weak laws, and the Republicans [en el Congreso] “They have prevented stronger gun laws.”
California’s Gun Violence Restraining Orders (GVROs) have been replicated in 19 other states – including the red states of Indiana and Florida – and the District of Columbia.
California also has another gun seizure program that is the only one similar in the country, according to Justice Department Attorney Rob Bonta.
According to the prosecutor, state law enforcement agents can search the residence of someone who is legally prohibited from possessing weapons and confiscate them.
The ban includes people convicted of a felony or a violent misdemeanor, or who have a domestic violence restraining order or suffer from a serious mental illness.
Deadly cocktail
“The lack of strict regulations at the federal level of semi-automatic weapons, which are weapons of war, should never be in the hands of civilians,” said Salvador Sanabria, civil rights leader in the organization El Rescate.
Sanabria considered that a second factor that contributes to mass shootings such as the one that occurred in Sherman Oaks and those this year on January 21 and 23, in Half Moon Bay and Monterey Park, have been the consequence “of an epidemic in health issues.” mental”.
“We have seen that the majority of shooters suffer from major mental disorders and that is part of a deadly cocktail that leads to the tragedies that are continually recurring in the United States,” Sanabria said.
In Half Moon Bay, the gunman, Chunli Zhao, 66, took the lives of eight people in what was described as a work-related act of violence.
Meanwhile, in Monterey Park, the murderer, Huu Can Tran, who ultimately committed suicide, machine-gunned and killed 11 people on the day of the Lunar Year celebration. He used a .308 caliber rifle, which is popular for hunting deer, black bear and wild boar.
The tragedy is considered the second deadliest attack in Los Angeles County, after the Sherman Oaks tragedy.
“A third ingredient of the deadly cocktail is the illogical politicization of the issue of the constitutional right to bear arms in this country,” added Sanabria. “There is no sense in the debates but rather a manipulative and absurd politicization.”
Violence in Los Angeles County
Miguel López, spokesman for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD), highlighted that the proliferation of weapons could be solved through education
“Educating people about the danger of having a gun in the wrong hands can help,” he said. “There are those who can legally buy a weapon and sell it, and they erase the identification number so that the authorities cannot locate where those weapons are.”
López reported that, in the county, the use of firearms has been most prominent in the Century, Compton, South Los Angeles, Palmdale and Lancaster stations.
Indeed, although it is not specified whether the cause of death was due to weapons, from a murder committed in 2002, there are now five; and in Lancaster, from 10 murders a year ago, there are now 22, that is, there has been an increase of 120%.
And, among 183 of the more than 550 shootings that had been recorded before July 4, the Gun Violence Archive reported that Los Angeles County was the fourth most violent with 17 shootings, only behind the 23 registered in Memphis and the same number in Milwaukee, and 41 in Chicago.
Other areas of violence were: Cleveland, with 15 shootings; Washington DC (15); Detroit (14); Baltimore (11); New York (11); Memphis (10); Philadelphia (10); Houston (9) and Atlanta (7).
Guns off the streets
“Five years ago today, twelve individuals went out to enjoy a night like any other with friends and became another figure in the horrible wave of gun violence that our country is experiencing,” said Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn. “I keep their loved ones and their communities in my thoughts on this anniversary of that night.”
“The definitive solution to this epidemic of gun violence is in the hands of Congress, but in the face of its obvious inaction, I intend to continue doing everything possible within my power to protect our communities,” highlighted Supervisor Hahn.
Since last May, his office has held eight gun buyback events. In total, in Los Angeles County District 1, which Hahn presents, 1,292 guns have been collected.
“There are 1,292 weapons that will not be stolen or used in a crime, or that will not fall into the hands of a child or someone who is considering suicide,” he stressed.
Salvador Sanabria added: “If I had the vote, I would ask for a total ban on semi-automatic weapons, rifles and pistols in the hands of civilians; It is a radical position, but there are countries in Europe where it is prohibited to have them, since they are exclusive to the militia, and they only use them to defend sovereignty, not to kill people.”