- Title: L.A. sheriff moves to shut down "panic gun buying"
- Date: 24th March 2020
- Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (FILE - UNSPECIFIED DATE) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY MEN'S CENTRAL JAIL EXTERIOR TWIN TOWERS CORRECTIONAL FACILITY JAIL
- Embargoed: 8th April 2020 00:44
- Keywords: Coronavirus Los Angeles bars gun stores inmates nightclubs prisons sheriff
- Location: LOS ANGELES / BURBANK / CULVER CITY, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES;
- City: LOS ANGELES / BURBANK / CULVER CITY, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES;
- Country: USA
- Topics: Health/Medicine
- Reuters ID: LVA004C6EXZK7
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: The Los Angeles County sheriff, Alex Villanueva, said at a news conference on Tuesday (March 24) that police are keeping a close eye on gun stores and may be forced to shut them down because of social distancing regulations amid the coronavirus crisis.
He said "From the law enforcement operations, we received complaints from particular businesses who are not adhering to social distancing, chief among them have been gun shops, nightclubs, bars and strip clubs."
The sheriff made it clear that they were not banning the sale of guns, but they needed to make buying guns safer. He said "Those that are involved in the security business that still need to do their business and obviously there's need for security in both the public and the private sector, we want to make sure they're properly equipped and all that. However, that is not a license then for everyone to do panic gun buying and rushing to stores, which is now what we're seeing and again that violates the whole issue of social distancing and it's creating its own attractive nuisance."
Villanueva also spoke about the county's release of inmates in overcrowded prisons to reduce the spread of the virus, saying they had released 1700 inmates, reducing the prison population by 10 percent.
He said "What we're going to make sure is that no violent, serious inmate who's in there for a serious crime that represents a threat to the community, they will not be released under any circumstances."
(Production: Rollo Ross) - Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2020. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None