California governor signs bills to bolster gun control

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed several gun control measures Tuesday, including one that allows the court to consider stalking and animal cruelty as grounds to restrict access to firearms.

The state already has some of the strictest gun laws in the country. The new laws signed by Newsom will expand restrictions on who could own firearms, prevent the proliferation of “ghost guns” and increase protections for domestic violence survivors.

“California won’t wait until the next school shooting or mass shooting to act,” the Democratic governor said in a statement. “In the absence of congressional action, our state is once again leading the way by strengthening our nation-leading gun laws.”

Under the new laws, a judge can consider stalking, acts of animal cruelty or threats of violence as evidence for a gun violence restraining order. A person who has a misdemeanor charge dismissed because they were found to be mentally incompetent will also be prohibited from possessing a gun. Current laws only apply such restrictions to cases involving felony charges.

Another law targets ghost guns by requiring law enforcement agencies to prohibit their contracted vendors from selling guns meant to be destroyed. The measure received bipartisan support from the Legislature.

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