A Carlsbad man is leading an effort to roll back new California gun restrictions recently signed by Governor Jerry Brown.
Barry Bahrami said he did not like the way the gun restriction bills were pushed through the California legislature and he wants voters to have their voices heard.
According to the California Secretary of State’s Office, Bahrami needs to gather signatures from 365,880 registered voters for each of the six petitions in order to qualify for the ballot. That number is about five percent of the total votes cast for governor in the November 2014 general election.
Proponets of any petitions have 90 days from the date the bill is chaptered to request and receive a title and summary from the Attorney General and to gather petition signatures for the referendum.
For Bahrami, the deadline is September 29th.
He told NBC 7 that he is confident he has the support to get it done.
“No problem. It's just a matter of the mechanics of getting them signed, filing. We got the numbers," he said.
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Bahrami has a Facebook page to get the word out called “Veto Gunmaggedon” and a website to raise support.
He said he will have petitions at gun stores and gun ranges. He added that he has hundreds of volunteers across the state, ready to go.
“They've been waiting for this, I think. This is just a spark in a big powder keg and now it's game on they want to get their rights back,” he said.
The gun control bills include:
- AB 1135 and SB 880: Bans the sale of semiautomatic guns with “bullet buttons” allowing easy replacement of the ammunition magazine
- AB 1511: Short-term loans of firearms to people other than immediate family members not allowed
- AB 1695: Not reporting a stolen gun would be a crime
- SB 1235: Background checks required when buying ammunition to prevent felons from purchasing
- SB 1446: Illegal to have possession of ammunition magazines that hold more than ten bullets
But Bahrami needs to gather signatures at a time when support for tighter gun restrictions seems to be growing.
Ron Marcus, with the San Diego Chapter of the Brady Campaign, said this is another attempt to stall or veto well thought-out common sense gun laws.
“We're looking for something that respects everybody but helps keep out society safer,” Marcus said.
But Bahrami calls them feel good laws, saying someone who wants to do harm can find weapons banned in California -- in other nearby states.
"Criminals do not obey the law by definition,” he said.
Marcus argued that with so much gun violence in the U.S., the country has to start moving toward laws that create a safer culture.
“With every right, comes responsibility and because we live in a very large society, with a lot of guns, we need to have some sort of regulations that keep everything in check,” he said.
Bahrami told NBC 7 that he's also interested in safety, especially for his family.
Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom also has a measure for gun regulations on the November ballot that proposes do do what Bahrami is calling for.
