Felons and the Mentally ill allowed to keep guns!!

Posted by Tom

The New York Times Reports that Calif. Gov. Jerry Brown has boasted in the past that the state’s financial woes are finally over, but a report Wednesday said the state is unable to find the funds to disarm more than 19,700 CONVICTED FELONS AND THE MENTALLY ILL!

This is another example of why gun owners say the State and Federal Governments needs to enforce existing laws and not create new ones that only impact the Constitutional Rights of law abiding Citizens! 

More than 39,000 firearms are currently in the wrong hands, Stephen Lindley, chief of the Bureau of Firearms for the state Department of Justice, said at a joint legislative hearing.  Typically, the guns were purchased legally, but were never returned after the owners were convicted of a felony or diagnosed with an illness, The Los Angeles Times reports.

The state annually confiscates the guns of about 2,000 people on the Armed Prohibited Persons list, but the effort is like bailing out a sinking vessel, with more than 3,000 people being added to the list yearly, Mr. Lindley said.  “Despite our best efforts, the bureau does not have the funding or resources to keep up with this annual influx,” he told lawmakers.  The chief said it would cost at least $25 million to hire the staff necessary to clear the backlog over the next three years.

There is a $20 million surplus from funds collected after a gun buyer pays a fee for a background check. Democratic Sens. Mark Leno and President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg introduced a bill Tuesday that would allow officials to dip into that fund, The Times reports.

You can bet that California is NOT the only State in which this problem exists.  Enforce Existing Laws and don't make Felons of LAWFUL, RESPONSIBLE GUN OWNERS!