Most Guns Used to Commit Crimes in New York Were Bought in Other States, Report Finds

Despite the state’s strict gun laws, gun violence in New York persists because of less stringent policies in surrounding states, according to a new report published by the New York Attorney General’s office. 

The report, entitled “Target on Trafficking, New York Crime Gun Analysis” found that illegal gun trafficking from Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida -- states nicknamed the Iron Pipeline --accounted for 70 percent of guns used to commit crimes in New York between 2010 and 2015. 

Iron Pipeline states do not require background checks for private sales of guns, or at gun shows. None of the states except North Carolina require a permit prior to purchasing a handgun. 

The data for the report comes from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). In addition to using data from tracing guns, the report looked at how often NYAG’s Organized Crime Task Force and other law enforcement groups stopped gun trafficking schemes in the Iron Pipeline states. 

“Even as we work to make our streets safer, the illegal guns most often used in violent crimes continue to pour into our state. In fact, three-out-of-four guns used in New York crimes come from out-of-state,” New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said in a statement.

“The point of the report is to prove that no matter how tough your laws are, if you do not have tougher laws in other states and better laws at the federal level guns will continue to flow into the hands of criminals,” Schneiderman added. 

But the analysis also shows that some of the weapons were originally purchased in states that have tougher gun laws. 

Of the 14,588 traced weapons recovered in the Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Capital region and Lower Hudson Valley metropolitan areas, 42 percent, or 6,196, originated in New York, followed by 7 percent each in Massachusetts and Connecticut. Those are all states with relatively tight gun regulations and lower rates of gun ownership. 

New York City accounted for almost half of all guns recovered after being used in crimes— 25,799 — and 87 percent of those weapons were bought out of state.

Solutions proposed in the report focus on both the federal and state level. At the federal level, the report states that gun buyers should be required to undergo universal background checks, that the gun show loophole should be closed and that gun trafficking be made a federal crime. 

At a state level, the report recommends requiring those who want to buy handguns to have a permit. 

The report is the first of its kind, incorporating user friendly infographics to display gun trace data. It can be found here.