Cop-killer is 'sick,' Villaraigosa says in touting gun control

In Sacramento to endorse a package of gun-control legislation, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on Thursday called the former LAPD officer who allegedly shot multiple people a "sick individual" and said the case illustrates the need for tougher rules on firearms.

"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.''

TIMELINE: Manhunt for ex-LAPD officer

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.''

PHOTOS: Manhunt for ex-LAPD officer

The mayor said he is in contact with the LAPD and monitoring the investigation.

"It's apparently a sick individual," Villaraigosa said about the suspected gunman, Christopher Jordan Dorner. Asked about reports that the alleged gunman has a "beef" with the LAPD, the mayor responded sharply: "There is no beef that someone can have to kill three innocent people in the way that he has. Whatever problems he has, there is no justification."

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--Patrick McGreevy in Sacramento