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MAYOR NEWSOM SIGNS STRICT ANTI-GUN LAW CO-WRITTEN BY DA HARRIS

San Francisco Laws Now Toughest in the Nation

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – Today Mayor Gavin Newsom, joined by District Attorney Kamala Harris and Police Chief Heather Fong, signed a new law co-authored by D.A. Harris that strengthens San Francisco’s anti-gun laws.

"Now San Francisco has the toughest anti-gun laws in the country," said Newsom. "We are committed to getting guns off the streets."

The new law, co-sponsored by two members of the Board of Supervisors, Ross Mirkarimi and Sophie Maxwell, prohibits the possession or sale of firearms on city property, requires firearms in residences to be in a locked container or have trigger locks, and requires firearm dealers to submit an inventory to the chief of police every six months.

"It's essential to public safety to keep illegal guns and the criminals who use them off our streets," said D.A. Harris. "This legislation will help keep guns away from children, out of schools and parks, off the black market and out of the hands of criminals. I thank the Mayor and the Board of Supervisors for passing this legislation."

Today Newsom, D.A. Harris and Fong held a press conference to sign the law and to display guns obtained in the "Gifts for Guns" event hosted Saturday by the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice and the police department.

Gifts for Guns is the city’s first-ever gun buy-back program. Residents were invited to turn in operable firearms in exchange for gift cards from Safeway and Wells Fargo Bank. One-hundred nineteen guns -- including five assault firearms and two sawed-off shotguns -- were turned in and destroyed. The program protected the anonymity of participants.

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