ASSAULT-WEAPONS BAN HAS MADE AMERICA SAFER.

Byline: William Bratton Local View

AS chief of the Los Angeles Police Department and a 28-year veteran of law enforcement, I have seen firsthand the death and destruction that can be brought by military-style assault weapons.

These guns are not necessary for hunting or self-defense, but their light triggers and rapid-fire capability make them weapons of choice for criminals. Congress has only five working days to renew the federal ban on 19 different models of semiautomatic assault weapons. If they fail to do so, these killing machines will soon be rolling off the assembly lines at major gun manufacturers and flying off the shelves of your local gun shop.

In 1994, the nation's law enforcement community, from small towns to large cities, rallied together in support of the assault-weapons ban for very practical reasons. Violent criminals and thugs had weapons of war far more powerful than our own, making it nearly impossible to protect neighborhoods that were being torn apart by vicious assault-weapon attacks in which hundreds of rounds of ammunition were spray-fired on innocent men, women and children.

Our mission to rid the streets of assault weapons was buoyed by the support of Presidents Ford, Carter and the late Ronald Reagan, who affirmed in a letter to Congress that a ban on assault weapons was common-sense public-safety legislation.

Thanks to their support, today police are safer and the public is safer. This progress will be in vain if the ban is allowed to evaporate. Presidents Ford, Carter and Clinton have now sent another letter to Congress urging renewal of the ban.

Since enactment of the federal assault-weapons ban in 1994, the proportion of banned assault weapons traced to crimes has dropped 66 percent. That's why virtually every federal, state and local law enforcement association supports pending legislation that will reauthorize the current ban. Since its passage, this legislation has been instrumental in increasing public safety, lowering incidents of violent crime and keeping new caches of these dangerous weapons from falling into the hands of criminals, street gangs, drug traffickers and terrorists.

The nation's law enforcement agencies will face a tremendous threat on the streets if Congress fails to renew the federal assault-weapons ban. If the gun lobby succeeds and President Bush and Congress allow the law to expire, then we can expect the return of military-style assault weapons such as the AK-47 and Uzi to our streets. This would be a crushing setback to the record-breaking reduction of violent crime in this country over the past decade.

Renewing the assault-weapons ban is more important now than ever, since we have evidence that it is exactly these kinds of weapons that are used and sought out by terrorists. In fact, an al-Qaida training manual uncovered in Kabul underscores their preferred usage among terrorists in the following instruction to terrorist cells overseas: ``In countries like the United States, it's perfectly legal for members of the public to own certain types of firearms. If you live in such a country, obtain an assault rifle legally, preferably an AK-47 or variations.''

We know that the best defense of our homeland security will depend on the front lines of local law enforcement officers. We need our lawmakers' help by putting obstacles, such as the assault-weapons ban, in the path of terrorists.

It is time for the president and Congress to support our nation's law enforcement professionals in their fight against crime and terrorism by showing their leadership on this issue. Now is the time to take the easy step of renewing the federal assault-weapons ban before it is too late. Failure to do so may prove to be a mistake that our nation will never forget.