US gun laws ‘a suicide pact’, says governor after shootings

AMERICANS’ right to bear arms has become a “suicide pact”, Democrat governor Gavin Newsom said, after California suffered its third deadly mass shooting in a matter of days.

A farm worker was in custody last night after seven of his colleagues were shot dead, two days after another gunman killed 11 people at a dance studio in the Los Angeles area.

In a separate incident on Monday evening, one person was killed and seven wounded in a “shooting between several individuals” in Oakland.

Mr Newsom was at a hospital meeting victims of the first mass shooting when he was pulled away to be briefed about the second.

“Tragedy upon tragedy,” he tweeted. He later told CBS: “Nothing about this is surprising. Everything about this is infuriating. The Second Amendment is becoming a suicide pact.”

Mr Newsom, a likely presidential candidate if Joe Biden does not run again, said he has “no ideological opposition” to people who “responsibly” own guns but that existing regulations are falling short.

On Monday, emergency responders were called to two farms in San Mateo County, south of San Francisco. Four people were found dead at one of them, while three more fatally wounded victims were found at a second location.

Sheriff Christina Corpus said 67-yearold Chunli Zhao was arrested shortly afterwards in a dramatic capture filmed by television crews in the farming region of Half Moon Bay.

That incident took place 48 hours after 72-year-old Huu Can Tran shot dead 11 people gathered for Lunar New Year at a dance hall in Monterey Park. He then drove to a second dance hall nearby, but was tackled and disarmed by an employee. He fled the scene and took his own life shortly afterwards.

The family of one of his victims, My Nhan, 65, said the tragedy was “still sinking in”. “She spent so many years going to the dance studio on weekends,” they said. “It’s what she loved to do. But unfairly, Saturday was her last dance.”

Yesterday, Mr Biden said: “Even as we await further details on these shootings, we know the scourge of gun violence requires stronger action. I once again urge both chambers of Congress to act quickly and deliver this assault weapons ban to my desk, and take action to keep American communities safe.”