CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF : SACRAMENTO : End Sought to Ban on Assault Weapons

State Sen. Don Rogers (R-Bakersfield) took the first step in a proposed legislative and legal attack on the law that banned semiautomatic, military-style assault guns in California. Rogers introduced legislation to repeal the “Assault Gun Control Act” of 1989, contending it was illegally implemented and violates a state constitutional provision that gives voters the right to challenge a law by referendum. Meanwhile, some gun enthusiasts have indicated they intend to bring a Superior Court lawsuit against the assault weapons ban for the same reasons cited by Rogers. Rogers, a foe of gun control, indicated that passage of his bill was a long-shot effort, at best. “Hopefully, we’ll work the legislative side of the street as well as the judicial side,” he told reporters.