The Mulford Act was a 1967 California bill that prohibited public carrying of loaded firearms without a permit. Named after Republican assemblyman Don Mulford, and signed into law by governor of California Ronald Reagan, the bill was crafted with the goal of disarming members of the

Black Panther Party The Black Panther Party (BPP), originally the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense, was a Marxist-Leninist and black power political organization founded by college students Bobby Seale and Huey P. Newton in October 1966 in Oakland, Califo ...

who were conducting armed patrols of Oakland neighborhoods, in what would later be termed

copwatching Copwatch (also Cop Watch or Cop-Watch) is a network of activist organizations, typically autonomous and focused in local areas, in the United States, Canada and Europe that observe and document police activity while looking for signs of police mis ...

. They garnered national attention after

Black Panthers The Black Panther Party (BPP), originally the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense, was a Marxist-Leninist and black power political organization founded by college students Bobby Seale and Huey P. Newton in October 1966 in Oakland, Califo ...

members, bearing arms, marched upon the

California State Capitol The California State Capitol is the seat of the Government of California, California state government, located in Sacramento, California, Sacramento, the state capital of California. The building houses the chambers of the California State Legisl ...

to protest the bill. Assembly Bill 1591 was introduced by Don Mulford (R) from Oakland on April 5, 1967, and subsequently co-sponsored by John T. Knox (D) from

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, Californi ...

, Walter J. Karabian (D) from Monterey Park, Frank Murphy Jr. (R) from Santa Cruz,

Alan Sieroty Alan Gerald Sieroty (born 13 December 1930) is an American politician and attorney who served as a member of both chambers of the California State Legislature. Early life and education Born in Los Angeles, California, Sieroty was the son of re ...

(D) from Los Angeles, and William M. Ketchum (R) from Bakersfield. A.B 1591 was made an “urgency statute” under Article IV, §8(d) of the

Constitution of California The Constitution of California ( es, Constitución de California) is the primary organizing law for the U.S. state of California, describing the duties, powers, structures and functions of the government of California. California's original c ...

after “an organized band of men armed with loaded firearms ..entered the Capitol” on May 2, 1967; as such, it required a 2/3 majority in each house. On June 8, before the third reading in the Assembly (controlled by Democrats, 42:38), the urgency clause was adopted, and the bill was then read and passed. It passed the Senate (split, 20:20) on July 26, 29 votes to 7, and was signed by Governor Ronald Reagan on July 28, 1967. Both Republicans and Democrats in California supported increased gun control, as did the National Rifle Association of America. Governor Ronald Reagan, who was coincidentally present on the capitol lawn when the protesters arrived, later commented that he saw "no reason why on the street today a citizen should be carrying loaded weapons" and that guns were a "ridiculous way to solve problems that have to be solved among people of good will." In a later press conference, Reagan added that the Mulford Act "would work no hardship on the honest citizen." The bill was signed by Reagan and became

California penal code The Penal Code of California forms the basis for the application of most criminal law, criminal procedure, penal institutions, and the execution of sentences, among other things, in the American state of California. It was originally enacte ...

nr.25850 and nr.171c.Penal code 171c
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See also

References

Further reading