FACT CHECK: Would Stricter National Gun Laws Have Stopped California’s Mass Shootings?

Claim: California’s stringent gun laws would have stopped a series of mass shootings.

Who said it? Gov. Gavin Newsom (D., Calif.), Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D. Calif.), Washington Post.

Why it is important: California has some of most restrictive gun laws in America and leaders who want to share their policies with the rest of the country. Newsom and congressional Democrats spent the week arguing that the state laws won’t stop mass shooters unless it enforces its own restrictions.

Context: The three mass shootings that took place in California in January left Americans shaken. 18 people were killed in each of the three attacks. The first shooter used illegal firearms assault rifle It also featured a prohibited silencer, and a 30-round magazine. The gun of the second shooter was legally registered but also had a permit. Magazine 30-round California bars this. Although the weapon used in the third shooting has not been identified by police, they suspect it was the result of a gang battle.

Analysis: These shootings could not have been prevented if there were stricter gun laws in the country. All three involved banned weapons or were the result gang-related crime. A Department of Justice report from 2016 showed that 43% of criminals were gang members. The black market was where they bought their gunsComparable to the 10% who went to retailers, this is significantly lower.

Recently, experts with the Rockefeller Institute of Government spoke out Recognized This data shows that the majority of gun laws, including assault-rifle prohibitions, do not prevent mass shootings. Take a look at California. Newsom often attributes the state’s gun restrictions to reducing gun deaths to 37% below the national average. However, violent crime and murders remain common. State records are higher violent crime While the national average is lower, gun-related murders rose by 52 percent between 2019-2021.

However, this does not mean that all gun laws should be ignored. They keep lethal guns out of the hands criminals and mentally ill. Safety measures protect children from injuries and accidents. However, safety measures cannot stop bad people from doing terrible things.

Verdict: We give this claim 3 Clintons.