Villaraigosa Takes Obama's Gun Control Reform One Step Further

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Hours after President Obama called on Congress to pass tougher gun laws, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa Wednesday issued a warning to companies that have a stake in the firearms industry.

The mayor wants to make sure city pensions are no longer invested in companies that deal with the sale or manufacturing of assault weapons.

"City of Los Angeles funds should not go to profit companies who produce weapons designed to maximize carnage and death. As I stated in my letter to the board members, it is a moral and financial imperative to end our relationship with these companies," the mayor said.

Villaraigosa made the announcement surrounded by students whom he had met with to discuss school safety. The students got his attention after they appeared in a YouTube video, which has garnered millions of views, decrying and calling for an end to school violence.

"We want to move past just thinking about gun control, but really getting to the root of the problem, getting more help with counselors and health care programs to help young people and to really give us a chance to express our voice before we get to the violence," one female student told CBS2/KCAL9's Dave Lopez.

Another girl said, "The gun can't get up and shoot by itself, it's the people who hold the gun, so you have to dig deeper into it, you have to go back to the communities and the homes they were raised in...and the schools."

The mayor said that when it came to gun control reform Los Angeles will not wait for Washington D.C. or take orders from the National Rifle Association.

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