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Hochul announces 'successful start' to interstate task force on illegal guns

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Mon, Apr 11th 2022 09:30 am

Police investigations across state have taken 1,753 guns off street since formation of task force in late January

√ New York State Police increase gun tracing investigations by 75%, double numbers of guns seized

√ Task force, multistate consortium & law enforcement agencies across state continue to meet, share information

Gov. Kathy Hochul recently announced 1,753 firearms have been removed from the state's streets in the two months since she convened the Interstate Task Force on Illegal Guns – a 20% increase in the overall number of guns seized due to increased cooperation and communication from the state and regional partnership. New York State Police, New York City Police Department, the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and law enforcement agencies from New York, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Vermont, Ohio, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New Hampshire continue to meet. Hochul’s team said they are doing so to “share information to stop the flow of illegal guns across state lines and prevent further gun violence that is plaguing cities across the country.”

Hochul said, "We know that we have strength in numbers, and the Interstate Task Force on Illegal Guns brings together the largest regional police consortium that has ever been assembled to fight this national phenomenon of gun violence. I am proud to announce that the task force is already delivering results, with New York State Police, New York City Police Department and our local police agencies having removed over 1,700 guns off the streets over the last three months."

Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin said, "With the rise in gun violence felt across the nation, it is incumbent upon government to think beyond typical systems and solutions. For New York, this innovation demands two things: regional information sharing and the steadfast dedication of the best and brightest minds in law enforcement and public policy. I am proud of the efforts our Interstate Taskforce on Illegal Guns have made since our first meeting in January. We will continue to work until every, single illegal gun is off our streets."

From January through March, the NYSP has doubled the numbers of guns seized and increased the number of gun tracing investigations by 75%. Year to date, the number of guns seized by State Police and local departments across the state.

New York State Firearms Seizure Statistics from January through March 2022

 

JANUARY

FEBRUARY

MARCH

TOTAL (YTD)

 

 

NYSP Firearms Seized

72

96

150

318

 

 

NON-NYC Firearms Seized

269

365

310

944

 

 

NYC Firearms Seized

434

370

462

1,266

 

 

Total NYS Firearms Seized

775

831

922

2,528

 

 

NYSP has also recovered 20 ghost guns and conducted 167 gun tracing investigations in the first three months of 2022. From these cases, NYSP forwarded 35 investigative leads to 17 states in which a resident of that state was arrested in New York for illegally possessing and trafficking of firearms. The individuals found to be in possession of an illegal firearm and were arrested in New York reside in Florida, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, Texas and Nevada, among others. In most instances, multiple firearms were possessed by a single person.

State Police Superintendent Kevin P. Bruen said, "Getting illegal guns out of our communities is a top priority and, thanks to the partnerships we are developing with other law enforcement agencies, we are seeing immediate progress. I believe we have only scratched the surface of what we can accomplish. Our work will continue unabated, and I want to thank Gov. Hochul for the support and our local, federal and state partners for their commitment to this effort."

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Special Agent in Charge John Devito said, "The proactive and innovative leadership of Gov. Hochul is just the type of thinking we need to address gun violence in our communities. ATF will continue to support and reinforce the ongoing collaboration both here and across the nation to support such initiatives."

Last month, New York state's nationally recognized network of 10 Crime Analysis Centers launched crime gun intelligence dashboards in each center. These dashboards now provide a critical tool for sharing and visualizing statewide data on shootings, recovered guns, arrests for firearm-related offenses, and crime gun tracing information from the ATF. This information is shared among more than 350 state and local law enforcement agencies that participate in the network and informs their policing and investigative strategies to get guns off the streets and solve major crimes. The state's network is supported and funded by Division of Criminal Justice Services and local law enforcement agencies.

NYSP is providing the 10 centers with federal tracing information on a weekly basis for inclusion in their dashboards. This sharing of information has begun to enhance local investigations, and is leading to the development of several firearms trafficking targets for interdiction and prosecution.

The governor’s team said, “These crime gun intelligence dashboards are a key component of Gov. Kathy Hochul's 2022 State of the State policy proposal to increase funding from $8.1 million to $15 million for the CAC's network and establish dedicated crime gun intelligence capabilities within each center. The centers are currently in the process of obtaining firearm and ballistic tracing equipment to allow law enforcement agencies to quickly collect, process and analyze evidence to solve and prevent firearm-involved violent crime, adding a significant resource to support the state's gun-involved violence reduction efforts.”

On March 2, NYSP hosted an intrastate meeting attended by representatives of the ATF, New York State Attorney General's Office, DCJS, statewide chiefs and sheriffs associations, county prosecutors, the NYPD, and U.S. attorney's offices. On March 24, the second meeting of the interstate consortium was hosted by ATF in Boston. Future meetings are being scheduled.

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