Gun

Police were searching for a possible gunman at Cal State Northridge this afternoon.  According to an emergency notification on the school's Facebook page, police received a report at 10:27 a.m. of a man who indicated he had a gun. The man was described as 5-foot-8 with short spiky hair. He was said to be wearing a white T-shirt that says "human rights violation" and short jeans. Continue reading > > -- Abby Sewell, Los Angeles Times

Craig Kupka, I appreciate your thoughts about guns (“ Hunting rifles, shotguns are enough ,” Mailbag, Feb. 6), but you are an optimist. If you think owners of illegal guns are going to surrender their handguns and military-style weapons don't hold your breath; you won't live that long. Your thought on rejuvenating the mental health system is a goal we should attempt to achieve. Unfortunately, the mental health system is so fractured it will take years and billions of dollars to reach a meaningful status.

I am in concurrence with the sentiments from Jon “Bullet” Bales about the confusion as the start of the race (“ Downtown Dash the worst 5K run ever ,” March 15). If there is a false start, a recall gun should be shot to recall the field. This would be especially true of a road race. Since I was not being timed, I went on once I finally got an idea that something was wrong. While on the course, it appeared that the actual race was not started for another 15 minutes. That is probably due to way too much talk before the official start.

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) has drafted proposed new penalties for criminals who illegally purchase and smuggle firearms into Mexico, saying he hopes his measure will bring "something positive" out of the uproar over the Fast and Furious gun-tracking operation on the Southwest Border. Schiff said he will introduce legislation Thursday to create a two-year prison sentence for so-called "straw purchasers" who currently receive probation or very little jail time for acquiring weapons under false pretenses and then selling them to Mexican gun smugglers.

Police took a potentially suicidal man into custody in Northridge on Tuesday after he fired shots into the air. Officers responded to a report of shots fired on the 10000 block of Reseda Avenue at about 10:10 a.m. An LAPD spokeswoman said a woman also called to report that her husband was suicidal. When police arrived, the man pointed a gun at his head but eventually surrendered it and was taken into custody. Continue reading> > -- Abby Sewell, Los Angeles Times

Once again, our country has been forced to reflect upon the actions of a mad man armed with an assault weapon. This time, it was in Aurora, Colo. Who knows where it will happen next time? It is with this uncertainty that we should feel a need to seriously start thinking about how we can minimize the damage that a deranged individual can inflict upon the rest of us. Like many of you, I've involved myself in numerous conversations about the tragic events that took 12 innocent lives and injured dozens more last week.

I would like to correct Robert Morrison's version of the 2nd Amendment, which he seems to have conveniently misquoted to suit his opinion ("Argument against household guns," July 8). The actual version reads: "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed." He seems to have forgotten an important part, the part that reads "of the people" It's a shame that he tries to stereotype pro-gun Americans with his sarcastic fantasy perception of air-shooting, neighbor-killing maniacs.

GLENDALE — [Updated] Police briefly locked down Hoover High School on Thursday morning after students were seen with what turned out to be a prop gun from the drama department, officials said. The fake weapon was supposed to be locked up, Glendale Police Sgt. Tom Lorenz said, and school officials were looking into how it got out. "It should have been secured," he said. "It's unknown why it wasn't secured. " No injuries were reported in the incident. At 8:47 a.m., a student reported seeing fellow classmates playing with what appeared to be a handgun during class, said Elena Heimerl, spokeswoman for the Glendale Unified School District.

Toll Middle School was briefly locked down this morning after a student reported seeing a man with a gun on campus who turned out to be an armored vehicle driver on routine business, officials said. The student was walking through the campus when he spotted the man and immediately alerted school officials, who locked down the campus about 9:55 a.m., said Steven Frasher, spokesman for the Glendale Unified School District. The lockdown was lifted about 10:10 a.m. after police discovered the man's identity.

Burbank police arrested a 76-year-old man early Thursday morning for allegedly firing off two shots in an attempt to scare off two men who were on his property in search a vehicle for reposession. Konstanin Abramian was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon about 12:30 a.m. in the in the 3300 block of Lismore Lane after allegedly admitting to police that he fired two rounds toward the ground to scare the men off the property. The car they were searching for was at the location, police said.

Three teens were cited this week for allegedly burglarizing seven homes in Burbank and Glendale and stealing four guns, cash and jewelry, police said Wednesday. Police cited and released a 17-year-old Sun Valley boy and two Burbank boys, ages 16 and 17, to their parents on Monday after they admitted to breaking into the homes and taking various items, according to Burbank Police Sgt. Darin Ryburn. The boys' names weren't released because they are minors. The mother of the 17-year-old Burbank boy called Burbank police at around 4:45 p.m. Sunday after she found a safe containing cash and a 9mm handgun in her son's bedroom, Ryburn said.

There are a couple of things that seem confusing about the city's ban of gun shows on public property. First, how does the city just “cancel” a two-party contract? Second, how do they plan to replace the $60k or so in revenue? Let's hope they don't raise the electric rates and pilfer the money from there. Donald Cameron Glendale

Re: “ Gun shows banned on city property ,” the story on the decision of the Glendale City Council to prohibit the use of Glendale's public buildings for sale of firearms. Glendale Mayor Frank Quintero was quoted as saying at Tuesday's Glendale City Council meeting that, “it was well within the purview of local officials to set guidelines for use of public facilities.” While it is certainly within the purview of the council to set public policy as representatives of the electorate, it is also a council responsibility to accept fiduciary responsibility.

Re: “ Gun shows banned on city property ,” March 20: Never been prouder to say “I live in Glendale.” Susan Harris Glendale

My friends, neighbors and fellow members of the Coalition for a Better Glendale are proud of our city for ending its association with the Glendale Gun Show. When the City Council voted 3-2 to adopt the ordinance banning the sale and possession of guns and ammunition on public property, Glendale officially recognized the gun show for the dinosaur it had become. Mayor Frank Quintero, Councilmember Rafi Manoukian and Councilmember Laura Friedman deserve our thanks for resisting the out-of-touch, editorial-page call of this Los Angeles-based newspaper, and for standing up for their community - for our community.

Glendale is poised to make a ban on gun shows on city property officials tonight despite a threat by the National Rifle Assn. to file a legal challenge. A majority of the five-member City Council expressed support for the ban amid strong backing from a group of residents who say the gun shows at the Civic Auditorium send the wrong message that Glendale facilitates weapons sales in a world changed by a spate of mass shootings. Opponents to the ban note that there have been no public safety issues reported over the years, prompting accusations that the push is merely an emotional response to national headlines, including the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting that left 27 people, including 20 first-graders, dead.

Defending the majority of the City Council that voted to ban gun shows on city-owned property, Glendale Mayor Frank Quintero on Tuesday said it was well within the purview of local officials to set guidelines for use of public facilities. “If we've reached a point where a local jurisdiction cannot decide what goes into their Civic Auditorium and their parks, then we're in sad shape,” Quintero said. “The idea that there can't be any control, that you have to just kowtow to the [National Rifle Assn.]

The gun show happened, thankfully without incident. But at what cost? I spent a lot time in that block on Saturday, March 2. I watched protesters, press conferences, attendees and police. I watched people walking about with guns strapped to their backs. I saw loads of ammunition being carted out of the auditorium. I stood in front of my college and watched people scream and shout that their rights were being dismantled. And I paid for it. Every one of the citizens in Glendale paid for that gun show in taxes and reputation.

Early on Friday, March 1, I drove by the Glendale Civic Auditorium and saw the garish gun show signs along Verdugo Road. Nausea welled up in my throat as the 20 dead Sandy Hook Elementary School children and the 12 slaughtered Aurora movie theater patrons infiltrated my vision. The nausea was completed by remembering the harsh voices of NRA spokesmen and multitudes of gun owners that uncompromisingly refuse to consider even the minutest forms of rational gun control. It is so searingly sad to recognize that an opaque veil seems to shield the 2nd Amendment shouters from the horrors of gun violence.

Three Chatsworth women pleaded not guilty Friday to charges that they brought a gun to Allan Daily High School to scare a 17-year-old student into paying $500 for traffic collision repairs, officials said. Sona Carrillo, 37, Nora Tashchyan, 41, and Goharik Tashchyan, 18, each face one felony count of possessing a firearm in a school zone, according to a Los Angeles County Superior Court criminal complaint. At about 4:40 p.m. Wednesday, the trio reportedly went to the high school in the 200 block of North Kenwood Street to threaten the girl and collect $500 they claimed was owed to them due to a traffic collision that occurred a few days before in North Hollywood, Glendale Police Sgt. Tom Lorenz said.