Survey of law officers finds majority doesn't agree with Obama's gun control plan

Published April 09, 2013

FoxNews.com

An overwhelming majority of law enforcement officers says a federal ban on assault weapons would not reduce the risk of violent crime, according to a recently released national survey of active duty and retired officers.

The survey conducted by PoliceOne.com found that 85 percent of officers think the passage of the Obama administration’s gun control legislation either would have no effect or would have a negative effect on their safety.

More than 80 percent of respondents said they supported arming school teachers and administrators with guns. And more than 28 percent of officers say they think having “more permissive” concealed carry policies for civilians would help most in preventing large-scale shootings in public.

The survey, which polled 15,000 law enforcement professionals at all ranks, was conducted online March 4-13. Survey questions were composed and compiled by PoliceOne staff and the Pretorian Group, PoliceOne’s parent company.

“The American people, and particularly the members of law enforcement, want politicians in Washington to stop pursuing a failed political agenda and get to work fixing our broken mental health system, improving school security and getting criminals off the streets,” said Chris Cox, head of the National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action following the results of the PoliceOne survey.

The results of the survey, released Monday, come as President Obama tries to keep the political momentum for gun control measures going. Last week, he traveled to Colorado and Connecticut – two states that have seen some of the country’s worst mass shootings and responded by passing tough state gun laws. During his multistate swing, Obama repeatedly called on Congress to step up its efforts for universal background checks for gun buyers and limits on large-capacity ammunition magazines.

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2 police officers shot dead in Santa Cruz, California

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. –  Two Santa Cruz police officers were shot and killed Tuesday while investigating a sexual assault, and a suspect was also fatally shot, authorities said.

The officers were shot around 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, and Santa Cruz County Sheriff Phil Wowak confirmed Tuesday evening that they died.

The shooting in the community about 60 miles south of San Francisco took place as police were investigating a report of a sexual assault, Wowak said. A suspect fired, hitting the two officers.

A suspect was shot while police were in pursuit of the shooter, the sheriff said. Authorities said that person also died.

The names and ages of the officers and the suspect have not been released.

Residents on the streets adjoining where the two shootings occurred received an automatic police call at about 3:30 p.m. warning them to stay locked inside.

About half an hour later, more than a dozen semi-automatic shots echoed down the streets in a brief shootout that killed the suspect.

Three hours later, police were going door to door in the neighborhood searching homes, garages, even closets, although the sheriff said authorities didn't know if another suspect remained at large.

Police, sheriff's deputies and FBI agents filled intersections, some with guns drawn, in what is ordinarily a quiet, residential neighborhood.

A store clerk a few buildings away from the shooting said the barrage of gunfire was "terrifying."

"We ducked. We have big desks so under the desks we went," said the clerk, who spoke on condition of anonymity and asked that her store not be identified because a suspect might still be at large and she feared for her safety.

She said she was still locked in her store a few hours after the shooting and was still scared.

Two schools were locked down during the shooting. About two hours later, the students were evacuated by bus to the County Government Center about half a mile away.

As darkness fell, helicopters and light aircraft patrolled above the neighborhood, which is about one mile from downtown Santa Cruz and the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.

The university of California, Santa Cruz campus is in hills about five miles away from the shooting scenes.

Santa Cruz has faced a recent spate of violence, and a rally had been scheduled for Tuesday for community leaders to speak out against shootings. But after Tuesday's gunfire, both a regularly scheduled City Council meeting and the downtown rally were canceled after teary-eyed city leaders learned of the deaths.

The surprising attacks include the killing of Pauly Silva, a 32-year-old martial arts instructor who was shot outside a popular bar and restaurant in downtown Santa Cruz on Feb. 9.

Two days later, a UC Santa Cruz student waiting at a bus stop was shot in the head during a robbery. She is recovering from her injuries.

Then on Feb. 17, a 21-year-old woman was raped and beaten on the UC Santa Cruz campus. Four days later, a Santa Cruz couple fought off two men who came in their home before dawn and threatened them with a sword.

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