>> PEGGY: California banned assault weapons in 1989 at an elementary school in Stockton,
they also band large ammunition magazines, here with the groups take on the violence
is San Diego's chief of police, William Landsdowne.
Police officers are on the front lines when it comes to gun violence, how often and what
kind of fire power do they face here in San Diego?
>> We're seeing an increase in the types of weapons and the quality of weapons that we
face on a dally basis in the city of San Diego and I'm an advocate that we need some kind
of assault weapons ban across the nation because even though we have a ban here in California
they can go across state lines and get those weapons and bring them in.
We have had two shootings, one was on Halloween, a person was armed with an M 14, a military
grade weapon that punches through our bullet proof vests, he fired six shots and we were
lucky the officers returned fire and put him down and this week a person committed suicide
and confronted officers with an AR 15.
>> PEGGY: Is it difficult to enforce gun policy here in San Diego in cities if you don't have
that national policy in place?
>> Well, it makes the access of those guns quickly and easily available to people even
though there is a ban hear you can't buy it in California you can go across the state
line and bring them back.
>> PEGGY: You told us about the two deaths, what about gun related injuries, either to
your officers or to the public?
How has that been going?
What's the situation with that right now?
>> I have a personal stake in this, I have lost several officers in my career of 47 years
and the officers in many cases face people better armed than they are, which puts them
as a tremendous disadvantage.
They have a handgun and they're facing somebody with an assault weapon and that puts them
at great risk and we need to manage that for the officers and the community that we serve.
>> PEGGY: What gun regulations would you support as far as background checks, assault weapons?
>> Where I would like to go nationally and I think New York just passed one in their
state is to ban assault weapons with a good definition so we all know what an assault
weapon is, I think that high capacity magazines immediate to be ban from importation and sales
throughout the nation, better background checks.
We have the database capability to do that and it needs to be enforced nationally to
be able to manage a lot of the gun issues that we have.
In San Diego, we have seen a 50% increase over the last three years in mental health
calls that we go to.
It needs to be addressed quickly and needs to be addressed by a courageous president
and I think he's going to do that tomorrow.
>> PEGGY: The national rifle association says that arming more citizens and if everybody
had a gun we would be safer but they have said that strict gun regulations don't cut
down on the number of home sides, as a police officer do you believe that's true?
>> Not at all.
For every homicide that we have there are three people shot with weapons.
The only difference between a homicide and the shootings across the country is aim in
the pros but when they say that they don't talk to the mother that has to put their children
in a bathtub at night to protect them from stray rounds being shot off in the neighborhoods.
There is plenty of information that shows the fewer guns the less suicides, shootings
and home sides that take place.
>> PEGGY: We were out of time, thanks for sharing your insight on this and I want to
let people know I will be back with another viewpoint about protecting second amendment
rights.