Valley Man Stored Gun Where Kids Could Play With It, City Attorney Charges

LOS ANGELES, CA — Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer Thursday announced his office has filed a criminal misdemeanor count against a San Fernando Valley man for allegedly keeping a loaded shotgun in an unsecured location where a small child had access to it.

Feuer said the issue of keeping guns in secure locations is of the utmost importance, as research shows the majority of gun violence in the city is committed with lost or stolen firearms.

"We need to prevent the misuse of a gun that has not been safely stored," Feuer said

Speaking at a news conference just days after 58 people were killed by a gunman in a mass shooting in Las Vegas, Feuer also discussed changes he wished to see on the national level when it comes to gun control, including a universal background check law, a ban on assault weapons and stronger laws to prevent someone who is dangerously mentally ill from possessing a firearm.

Feuer has long been a strong proponent for stronger gun laws, and has authored numerous ones during his previous service on the City Council and in the state Legislature.

"I don't believe that generalities cut it right now. We should be very specific about what is most necessary to have an actual effect on the ground," Feuer said.

Feuer's office said Angelo Rocca, 43, has been charged with one misdemeanor count of not properly storing a gun. The maximum penalty on the charge is six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.

According to the complaint against Rocca, a 10-year-old in the home allegedly showed a friend the shotgun located in a closet in July, and the friend later made a report to school officials after allegedly overhearing remarks about his friend using the gun.

School police went to the Rocca's home in Sunland in September and recovered a loaded, unsecured and fully accessible 12-gauge shotgun in the closet, Feuer's office said.

City News Service; Photo: Shutterstock