Los Angeles, California - California Attorney General Xavier Becerra and Los Angeles County Sheriff Jim McDonnell Tuesday announced Operation Dual Force, a coordinated effort to remove illegally possessed weapons and ammunition from individuals in the Armed Prohibited Persons System (APPS) database. The joint operation, which is expected to be completed in December 2018, has successfully closed 227 APPS cases, 35 of which resulted in arrests. Investigators seized 111 firearms, including seven assault weapons, 56 handguns, 21 shotguns, 24 rifles, and three lower receivers. In addition, the operation seized over 27,647 rounds of ammunition, 50 high-capacity magazines and 106 standard-capacity magazines.
The State of California is the first and only state in the nation to have established an automated system for tracking firearm owners who fall into a prohibited status. The APPS database works to identify individuals who previously procured firearms but later became prohibited from legally owning them because they were convicted of a felony or a violent misdemeanor, placed under a domestic violence or other restraining order, or suffer from serious mental illness.
“This operation is a prime example of how law enforcement comes together to fight crime and keep our neighborhoods safe by removing illegally-possessed guns from our communities,” said Attorney General Becerra. “Thanks to the partnership with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, we can now hold these individuals accountable. We will continue this successful collaboration to keep guns away from people who are prohibited from owning them.”
“The partnership between the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the California State Attorney General will more effectively fight gun violence by preventing unqualified people from obtaining weapons,” said Los Angeles County Sheriff Jim McDonnell.
Every day, agents at the California Department of Justice (CA DOJ) work to seize firearms from individuals who shouldn’t have them. Since June 2018, with the help of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD), the largest Sheriff’s department in the country, Operation Dual Force has successfully reduced the number of active APPS cases in Los Angeles County. CA DOJ and LASD investigators worked together to locate subjects, conduct field enforcement operations, and make arrests of those who have lost the right to possess firearms.
These cases will be referred to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office for prosecution. This operation, as well as ongoing and day-to-day investigations, have reduced the number of individuals in the APPS database to a historic low. During the last five years, CA DOJ has removed over 18,000 firearms from persons prohibited under California law from possessing them.
