"This isn’t about ephemeral, esoteric public policy,'' Villaraigosa told reporters at the Capitol. "These issues go to the heart of a civil society when you have the number of people who die every single day across the nation as a result of gun violence.''

Villaraigosa had scheduled his appearance before he received a call Thursday morning from Police Chief Charlie Beck about a former cop who is suspected of killing three people and is on the loose. But he cited the serial shootings as an example of the kind of violence facing the country.

"The time is now to act. We have to address the level of gun violence,'' Villaraigosa said, adding that the shootings are "a very graphic and to-the-point illustration of what mayors have to deal with every day.''