The Los Angeles Police Department admitted Tuesday that 2016 murders there had spiked by 27.5 percent—with double-digit increases in robbery and aggravated assault—over the same period in 2015, the Los Angeles Times reported. Last week, LAPD Chief Charlie Beck said that 10 of the 12 shootings reported the previous weekend were considered gang-related, as were more than half of the 48 homicides reported in the city by then.
So although LAPD Chief Beck told CBS in January that the “the solution” to gang violence “is communities that work to save their children”—and although California lawmakers continue to play games with more gun laws that affect only honest law-abiding citizens—we can’t help but wonder: Since it’s already illegal under federal law for gang members, drug dealers and convicted felons to carry guns—and each count is worth five years in federal prison—why not simply enforce the laws on the books?
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