California's draconian gun laws failed to stop a shooting at a child's birthday celebration in the city of Stockton over the weekend that left four dead and more than a dozen injured.
Three children and one adult were killed in the attack, which San Joaquin County Sheriff's spokesperson Heather Brent says may have been a targeted act of violence.
Just before 6 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 29, sheriff’s deputies were called to a shooting in the area of the banquet hall, where approximately 100 to 150 attendees were present.
"They were coming together as a family, having a time to enjoy," Brent said.
Stockton Vice Mayor Jason Lee expressed heartbreak and anger Saturday evening following reports of the mass shooting in the city.
“Tonight, my heart is heavy in a way that’s hard to put into words,” Lee wrote on Facebook shortly after 7 p.m. “As Vice Mayor of Stockton — and as someone who grew up in this community — I am devastated and angry to learn about the mass shooting at a child’s birthday party.”
Sheriff Patrick Withrow has said that there may have been more than one assailant in the attack, and that their shots may have continued outside the property as well. Stockton's mayor, meanwhile, has said the shooting was gang-related, and the IBTimes reports the party was linked to a Filipino gangster rapper called Nano.
Early online reports suggested that guests included figures connected to local Fly Boy Crips groups and affiliates of the Muddy Boyz, though police have not formally verified those associations. Nevertheless, the speculation fuelled immediate and heated public debate over the possible role of gang-linked networks in the attack.
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Online commentators quickly connected the violence to Stockton's long-documented gang struggles.
The Fly Boy Crips, also known as Flyboys, and their alleged links to Muddy Boyz groups have featured repeatedly in law enforcement reports and prior investigations tied to violent crime.
Critics revived references to a 2020 multi-agency operation that led to the arrest of 34 individuals tied to the Asian Boyz, Muddy Boyz Crips and Loctown Crips gangs.
Several hours after the attack took place, police in Stockton also arrested five people on gun and gang-related charges, though at this point authorities have not connected the men to the shooting at the ice cream store that hosted the birthday party.
The shocking violence is a painful reminder that, despite boasts to the contrary from figures like Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta (who's reportedly considering a run for governor next year), the state's restrictive gun control laws aren't stopping gang members and violent criminals from obtaining and using guns.
California has (among other anti-2A restrictions), universal background checks for both firearms and ammunition, a 10-day waiting period, and bans on so-called assault weapons, large capacity magazines, and "ghost guns." Those laws, though, have a far bigger impact on lawful gun owners than than on members of gangs like the Muddy Boyz and the Loctown Crips.
The perpetrators of this attack had no qualms about firing dozens of rounds at those attending a child's birthday party. Why would we think they would be afraid of violating any of California's gun laws?
This is horrific — a children’s birthday party on a holiday weekend became the scene of a mass shooting. My heart is with the families of those killed, the injured, and all the survivors.
— Gabrielle Giffords (@GabbyGiffords) November 30, 2025
We need our federal leaders to act. Kids shouldn’t fear for their lives at their own… https://t.co/L6KOWeyx3z
Anti-gun Democrats in Sacramento (and D.C.) will likely follow Giffofrds' lead and use this shooting to push for even more restriction on our right to keep and bear arms, but lawmakers really need to get serious about cracking down on criminal gangs instead. What gun control policy is Giffords demanding at the federal level that isn't already in place in California?
Given the long-running problems that Stockton has had with gang violence, maybe its time for President Trump to send federal law enforcement to the city to aid local police in their efforts to dismantle these criminal organizations. That, at least, would be a response targeted at the perpetrators of this terrible crime, unlike the anti-gun politicians who will use it to take another bite out of our right to keep and bear arms.
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