Two die in officer-involved shootings in California

Two people have been killed in two separate officer-involved shootings in the San Francisco Bay Area in the US state of California.

The two were killed in Union City and nearby Hayward on Saturday night and Sunday, the Associated Press reported.

One of those killed was a motorist shot by police at a traffic stop in Union City and died later at a hospital on Saturday night.

In the other shooting, which occurred near Hayward early on Sunday, a driver, who was trying to run over a police officer, was shot dead in his car.

On Saturday, two other people died in two different officer-related shootings in the Bay Area, putting the death toll at four in a little more than 24 hours.

There have been several deadly shootings across the United States over the past few months, putting the issue of lax gun control laws back in the spotlight.

Every year, more than 30,000 people are shot and killed in the US.

The US averages 87 gun deaths each day as a function of gun violence, with an average of 183 injured, according to the University of Chicago Crime Lab and the Centers for Disease Control.

The year 2012 has been a record-setting year for gun sales in the US.

About 4.5 million firearms are sold annually in the United States at a cost of 2 to 3 billion dollars.

Over 100,000 US citizens have signed an online petition to the White House, dubbed “We the People,” asking US President Barack Obama’s administration for a renewed national debate on gun control.