Los Angeles, California, August 25, 2021 - Today, Brady California and Women Against Gun Violence call on the Los Angeles City Council to swiftly and unanimously pass a motion instructing the City Attorney to draft an ordinance banning so-called ‘ghost gun’ kits. This month, Councilmembers Paul Koretz and Paul Krekorian presented a motion requesting the City Attorney to draft an ordinance prohibiting the possession, purchase, sale, receipt and transportation of non-serialized, unfinished frames and unfinished receivers, and non-serialized firearms within the City of Los Angeles.

Women Against Gun Violence Executive Director Margot Bennett shared:

“For almost 30 years, Women Against Gun Violence has worked closely with the city of Los Angeles to help enact strong and effective firearm safety measures that protect the residents of Los Angeles. Once again, #LALeads.”

Brady’s Los Angeles Chapter Leader Suzanne Verge noted:

“The city council must pass this motion and move forward to passing a full ban on ghost guns in our city. This is not abstract and such an action reflects the full throated will of the public. Ghost guns are a threat to public safety, and undermine nearly every common-sense gun safety law on the books. We cannot allow these unregulated, untraceable and fully functioning firearms to continue to proliferate in our communities. The city council must be aware that we are not going to back down on this issue and they must act now and ensure that any ordinance and its subsequent enforcement are equitable and do not inadvertently target or disproportionately and unfairly impact Black and Brown communities in the city. ”

Ghost guns are a growing problem in California and across the country, but Los Angeles has long been the epicenter of the issue. LAPD Chief Michel Moore noted in a recent press conference on ghost gun manufacturer, Polymer80, that nearly a third of all weapons recovered by law enforcement were ghost guns and that this figure is even higher in Los Angeles, with ghost guns constituting nearly 40 percent of recovered firearm, while the Sheriff’s Department reported that ghost gun seizures increased by 50 percent last year.

About Ghost Guns

Ghost guns are non-serialized and untraceable firearms that are often made from "ghost gun kits," that can be bought online, at gun shows or at gun stores and assembled at home. "Ghost gun kits," include all of the parts and often the equipment necessary to build these weapons at home. These kits are widely available and can be purchased by anyone, including prohibited purchasers, domestic abusers, and gun traffickers, without a background check. As these kits and guns are sold at gun shows and online every day throughout the country, they undermine all of the life-saving policies that state legislatures have fought so hard to put in place.

Several states including Hawaii, New Jersey, and Nevada, and two cities, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., have already instituted bans on ghost guns or parts and kits used to assemble these weapons, and several other states including California, Rhode Island, and Connecticut have also passed laws regulating ghost guns. San Francisco, San Diego, and San Jose are considering legislation surrounding ghost guns, and the parts and kits used to assemble ghost guns as well bans.