(MintPress) – Nearly 20,000 citizens in California own guns, yet are legally ineligible under current laws. A recent report by state law enforcement shows that many citizens reportedly lost their legal rights to own firearms due to felony convictions, domestic violence, mental health conditions or drug addictions, among other reasons.
The issue is one that highlights the difficulty in enforcing current laws, already insufficient measures incapable of keeping guns away from those unfit to own them. Law enforcement officials told a legislative committee Tuesday that it will take three years and approximately $25 million dollars to collect the firearms, a costly roundup for a state suffering major budget problems.
California is the only state in the U.S. to cross-check criminal records and health records with gun owners. However, the problem is one that state authorities are incapable of tackling because of the rapidly-increasing number of citizens added to the list every year.
According to Stephen Lindley, chief of the Bureau of Firearms within the state Department of Justice, 3,000 new names are added to California’s list every year, a staggering number for any law enforcement to handle.
While law enforcement may be incapable of fully collecting all illegal guns, major sweeps have netted hundreds of illicit firearms.
Since beginning operations in 2007, the Bureau of Firearms has conducted more than 9,400 investigations and collected more than 10,000 guns, according to the Department of Justice. The last statewide sweep occurred in September, netting 553 firearms, 141 of which were assault weapons.
Post-Sandy Hook shakeup
The problem is not one limited to the state of California and it remains a salient national issue, especially in the wake of the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.
In response to the Sandy Hook massacre that resulted in the deaths of 27 children, President Obama responded quickly by announcing 23 executive orders limiting citizens’ access to assault rifles and high-capacity ammunition clips earlier this month. The President also urged Congress to address the problem of gun violence in the country.
According to a report by Mother Jones, high-capacity clips were used in 31 of 62 mass shootings in recent years, including the recent Sandy Hook Elementary shooting.