The San Bernardino terror attack in December has renewed a debate over the Second Amendment among local officials.
One city official has responded to the Dec. 2, 2015, massacre by Islamic terrorists Syed Rizwan Farook, 28, and his wife Tashfeen Malik, 27, by calling for county employees to have access to weapons at work. The attack killed 14 and wounded 21 at the Inland Regional Center, which serves individuals with developmental disabilities.
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"Terror has arrived at our doorsteps, and we will and we can never be the same again," First District Supervisor Robert Lovingood said during the first Board of Supervisors meeting after the attack, KTTV-11 Los Angeles reported Monday.
"Empowering the people to protect themselves is a good place to start," Lovingood also wrote in a Jan. 22 op-ed for the Victorville Daily Press. "Make no mistake: This is not a call for vigilantism. This is a call for self-defense under the law."
Anthony McCune, a land-use technician with the county, told the Fox affiliate he was torn on the issue.
"I can see why that would be a really good idea, but I can also see why that would bother a lot of people to be armed here," said McCune.
Lovingood's plan aims to create caches of "strategically located weapons" that would ideally be used by military veterans. Other Californians would be encouraged to acquire concealed weapons permits as well.
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The plan, which still requires a formal proposal, would need to be approved by the Board of Supervisors, the station reported.
The good news for Lovingood is that gun sales have skyrocketed in San Bernardino since Farook and Malik's wave of Islamic terror. KTTV-11 reported a nine-fold increase in concealed carry applications since the terrorists died in a shootout with cops Dec. 2. The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said that translates to over 1,000 requests.
"Somebody coming in with a gun and you don't have anything to defend yourself with? I'd say [conceal carry] is actually a really good idea," Michael End of Magnum Shooting Range in San Bernardino told the station. "I think everybody was scared and really weren't ready to be attacked too close to home."
Waiting times for gun permits in San Bernardino have jumped from an average of 3 months to over 1 year.
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