Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker is seen after signing the bill banning "ghost guns" during a ceremony at St. Sabina Church's gymnasium in Chicago, Ill., on Wednesday.
Photo courtesy Chicago Police Department/Twitter/UPI
May 19 (UPI) -- Illinois on Wednesday became the first state in the Midwest to enact a ban on ghost guns -- those that are manufactured privately and without serial numbers, which authorities are seeing more often in crimes.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a bill into law prohibiting the sale and possession of ghost guns, which are often sold as a set of parts to be assembled at home.
Ghost gun opponents have argued that the weapons allow owners to circumvent background checks and cannot be traced by conventional means.
"The people creating, selling and purchasing these firearms know that they're working to circumvent common-sense gun laws that ensure guns stay out of the hands of traffickers, abusers, and convicted criminals," Pritzker said in a statement after signing the law.
May 19 (UPI) -- Illinois on Wednesday became the first state in the Midwest to enact a ban on ghost guns -- those that are manufactured privately and without serial numbers, which authorities are seeing more often in crimes.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a bill into law prohibiting the sale and possession of ghost guns, which are often sold as a set of parts to be assembled at home.
Ghost gun opponents have argued that the weapons allow owners to circumvent background checks and cannot be traced by conventional means.
"The people creating, selling and purchasing these firearms know that they're working to circumvent common-sense gun laws that ensure guns stay out of the hands of traffickers, abusers, and convicted criminals," Pritzker said in a statement after signing the law.
"We are seeing these unseralized guns being built in basements by those who should never have had access to such dangerous weapons and then used to commit heinous crimes, and it must be stopped to keep Illinoisans safe."
A "ghost gun kit" is seen during an event at the White House on April 11, when President Joe Biden announced federal actions to fight gun crime.
Photo by Chris Kleponis/UPI
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who supported the bill, said ghost guns are being found more often at crime scenes in the nation's third-largest city and they have been difficult for investigators to resolve. Chicago in recent years has seen a spike in gun violence.
"This is a crisis moment for us around violence in general, but also around the proliferation of these ghost guns," Lightfoot said according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who supported the bill, said ghost guns are being found more often at crime scenes in the nation's third-largest city and they have been difficult for investigators to resolve. Chicago in recent years has seen a spike in gun violence.
"This is a crisis moment for us around violence in general, but also around the proliferation of these ghost guns," Lightfoot said according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
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"Folks, we gotta wake up. The gun manufacturers are getting rich while we are burying boys and girls and elders all over this country without any consequences for the people who are part and parcel of the problem. And that's also the gun manufacturers."
The bill was passed in the face of opposition from the National Rifle Association, which urged its members last month to contact Pritzker and ask him to reject the law.
"[The ban] essentially ends the centuries-old practice of individuals building lawful firearms for personal use," the NRA's Institute of Legislative Action said in a statement.
"Folks, we gotta wake up. The gun manufacturers are getting rich while we are burying boys and girls and elders all over this country without any consequences for the people who are part and parcel of the problem. And that's also the gun manufacturers."
The bill was passed in the face of opposition from the National Rifle Association, which urged its members last month to contact Pritzker and ask him to reject the law.
"[The ban] essentially ends the centuries-old practice of individuals building lawful firearms for personal use," the NRA's Institute of Legislative Action said in a statement.
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"This only harasses and inconveniences law-abiding hobbyists who like to build their own firearms. It is already illegal under state and federal law for prohibited persons, such as felons, to possess any firearms, whether commercially made or home built."
A month ago, President Joe Biden announced new federal measures to fight the proliferation of ghost guns and called on states to prohibit sales and possession of the controversial weapons.
"This only harasses and inconveniences law-abiding hobbyists who like to build their own firearms. It is already illegal under state and federal law for prohibited persons, such as felons, to possess any firearms, whether commercially made or home built."
A month ago, President Joe Biden announced new federal measures to fight the proliferation of ghost guns and called on states to prohibit sales and possession of the controversial weapons.
US gun production has almost tripled over the past 20 years and 'ghost guns' are on the rise
Grace Kay
Thu, May 19, 2022
Gun sales on Black Friday 2021 soared, ranking among the top ten highest days for gun-related background checks.Keith Srakocic/AP
US gunmakers made almost three times as many firearms in 2020 as 2000, a new federal report said.
The number of untraceable "ghost guns" is also on the rise in the US, the report said.
The expansive report is part of Biden's efforts to stop illegal gun sales.
US gunmakers made 11.3 million legal firearms in 2020 — almost triple the 3.9 million guns that were produced 20 years prior, said a federal report that was released on Tuesday.
Three days after a mass shooting in Buffalo, New York, left 10 people dead and three more injured, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives released the first comprehensive analysis of gun sales in over 20 years. The report is a part of President Joe Biden's work to stop illegal gun sales.
The report showed that in 2020 — the same year gun sales surged — firearm-related homicides in the US hit their highest level in 26 years, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicated. In 2020, the agency reported 19,350 firearm homicides, 35% more than the previous year.
The data is not altogether unexpected. Last year, Insider reported that the FBI processed 39.7 million firearm background checks in 2020. Background checks are not a direct representation of the number of guns sold, as the data includes checks related to concealed-carry permits and suppressor sales, in addition to gun sales. But they're still an important indicator of sales, and the number of background checks was the most the agency had ever seen since it started recording the data in 1998. The National Shooting Sports Foundation estimated at the time that about 8.5 million people bought their first gun in 2020.
The ATF report also provided data on "ghost guns," which are firearms that can be bought online or 3D-printed and assembled at home. They are virtually untraceable and can be purchased without a background check. The agency said that police discovered over 19,000 ghost guns in 2021 — 10 times as many as were found in 2016.
Last month, Biden announced efforts to crack down on ghost guns, requiring the gun kits be recognized as "firearms" under the Gun Control Act and treated the same as other commercially assembled firearms. The new rule is set to go into effect next year.
Most gun-related crimes in the nation are caused by guns that are made legally in the US but then stolen, the report said. It said 39,147 firearms were reported stolen by gun stores between 2016 and 2020. That number doesn't include guns that were taken from individuals, which would likely push the number even higher. The Wall Street Journal reported in April that gun thefts had surged over the past two years.
The ATF also reported a shift in consumer interest in guns as semiautomatic handguns began to outsell rifles as early as 2009, which indicates a potential shift in gun purchases for hunting sport versus for physical defense.
"We can only address the current rise in violence if we have the best available information and use the most effective tools and research to fuel our efforts," Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco said in the press release from the Department of Justice. "This report is an important step in that direction. The Department will continue to gather the data necessary to tailor our approach at the most significant drivers of gun violence and take shooters off the streets."
Grace Kay
Thu, May 19, 2022
Gun sales on Black Friday 2021 soared, ranking among the top ten highest days for gun-related background checks.Keith Srakocic/AP
US gunmakers made almost three times as many firearms in 2020 as 2000, a new federal report said.
The number of untraceable "ghost guns" is also on the rise in the US, the report said.
The expansive report is part of Biden's efforts to stop illegal gun sales.
US gunmakers made 11.3 million legal firearms in 2020 — almost triple the 3.9 million guns that were produced 20 years prior, said a federal report that was released on Tuesday.
Three days after a mass shooting in Buffalo, New York, left 10 people dead and three more injured, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives released the first comprehensive analysis of gun sales in over 20 years. The report is a part of President Joe Biden's work to stop illegal gun sales.
The report showed that in 2020 — the same year gun sales surged — firearm-related homicides in the US hit their highest level in 26 years, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicated. In 2020, the agency reported 19,350 firearm homicides, 35% more than the previous year.
The data is not altogether unexpected. Last year, Insider reported that the FBI processed 39.7 million firearm background checks in 2020. Background checks are not a direct representation of the number of guns sold, as the data includes checks related to concealed-carry permits and suppressor sales, in addition to gun sales. But they're still an important indicator of sales, and the number of background checks was the most the agency had ever seen since it started recording the data in 1998. The National Shooting Sports Foundation estimated at the time that about 8.5 million people bought their first gun in 2020.
The ATF report also provided data on "ghost guns," which are firearms that can be bought online or 3D-printed and assembled at home. They are virtually untraceable and can be purchased without a background check. The agency said that police discovered over 19,000 ghost guns in 2021 — 10 times as many as were found in 2016.
Last month, Biden announced efforts to crack down on ghost guns, requiring the gun kits be recognized as "firearms" under the Gun Control Act and treated the same as other commercially assembled firearms. The new rule is set to go into effect next year.
Most gun-related crimes in the nation are caused by guns that are made legally in the US but then stolen, the report said. It said 39,147 firearms were reported stolen by gun stores between 2016 and 2020. That number doesn't include guns that were taken from individuals, which would likely push the number even higher. The Wall Street Journal reported in April that gun thefts had surged over the past two years.
The ATF also reported a shift in consumer interest in guns as semiautomatic handguns began to outsell rifles as early as 2009, which indicates a potential shift in gun purchases for hunting sport versus for physical defense.
"We can only address the current rise in violence if we have the best available information and use the most effective tools and research to fuel our efforts," Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco said in the press release from the Department of Justice. "This report is an important step in that direction. The Department will continue to gather the data necessary to tailor our approach at the most significant drivers of gun violence and take shooters off the streets."
Ghost Guns: What They Are, and Why They Are an …
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/09/us/politics/ghost-guns-explai…
2021-04-09 · Proponents of stricter gun laws have been pushing for action on ghost guns to address the growing problem before it becomes a full-blown catastrophe. In Philadelphia, for instance, 250 ghost guns ...
Ghost Guns’: Firearm Kits Bought Online Fuel Epidemic of Violence
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/14/us/ghost-guns-homemade-firearms.html
'Ghost guns,' handguns growing concern in Saskatoon, police firearms report says
Theresa Kliem - cbc.ca
Handguns and untraceable firearms are a growing concern in Saskatoon, the city's Board of Police Commissioners heard Thursday during a discussion of the Saskatoon Police Service's first firearms report.
© Robert Short/CBC
Ghost guns an emerging problem
Another emerging concern across Canada are "ghost guns," or untraceable guns, due to 3D printing becoming more readily available to the public, the report says.
In January, officers in the city executed a search warrant for 3D-printed firearms and components.
"These are guns that do not show up and you cannot track or trace," said Nogier.
"We know that this is going to be a potential threat for us."
Looking south of the border, as an example, officers in California took roughly 35,000 firearms off the street in 2021, he said — 30 per cent of which were ghost guns.
"Historically what we experience in Canada is roughly 10 per cent of what they experience in the States with respects to gun activity," he said.
"In California, next year, they're anticipating that 50 per cent of the guns that they will be dealing with are ghost guns."
Nogier added this raises some alarms in regard to what might happen in this community.
The findings in the report generally raise concerns for police officers, he said.
"There is more of an awareness from our front-line personnel that when they do pull a vehicle over that's been suspected of being involved in criminal activity, the likelihood of guns has never been higher now than it has been in the last two decades," said Nogier.
But in spite of some of the troubling numbers in the report, he told CBC that it's not intended to create fear in the city.
"We want to make sure that we get in front of it rather than have to react to problems that might arise," he said.
Theresa Kliem - cbc.ca
Handguns and untraceable firearms are a growing concern in Saskatoon, the city's Board of Police Commissioners heard Thursday during a discussion of the Saskatoon Police Service's first firearms report.
© Robert Short/CBC
Twenty-two of the 54 gunshot incidents reported in 2021 involved handguns, compared to 10 involving rifles and 12 involving shotguns, a Saskatoon Police Service report says.
The report is connected to the development of a Saskatoon Police Service gun crime strategy.
"When you start looking at national trends with respect to firearms and firearms activity, being a major centre, we know that there's going to be … firearms coming into our community and leaving our community," said Patrick Nogier, the service's superintendent in charge of the criminal investigation division.
Last year, police in the city recorded 168 incidents involving firearms.
While the number was the same as in 2020, it still reflects a 17 per cent increase compared to the five-year average of 143 occurrences, according to the report.
In 2021, officers responded to 54 gunshot incidents in Saskatoon, meaning incidents where someone actually pulled the trigger on weapon.
In 70 per cent of these events, there was a person who was shot, or being shot at.
The other 30 per cent include reports of gunshots that were not directed at a specific person or group, as well as shots fired at a home or business, the report says.
In 23 of the 54 incidents, police say they don't know the motivation behind firing the shots. However, 28 per cent of the gun crime events were gang motivated or associated, they say.
The report further showed that none of the seven homicides in the city in 2021 came as a result of illegal gun activity.
Handguns pose 'significant threat'
In total, police seized 590 firearms in 2021. Of those, 66 per cent are considered "crime guns" and 34 per cent were firearms turned over to police by the public without any association to a criminal event.
Of the 392 crime guns, 210 — 54 per cent — were handguns, the report says.
Those weapons are particularly dominant when it comes to crimes involving guns being fired, which Nogier said is concerning.
Twenty-two of the 54 gunshot incidents in 2021 involved handguns, compared to 10 involving rifles and 12 involving shotguns, the report says.
"Being able to access a handgun and hide a handgun and predominantly use a handgun poses a significant threat in the community," said Nogier.
"When you start seeing what's being taken and being reported as thefts from residences, we're not seeing a lot of handguns. So where are the handguns coming from?"
There were 39 stolen firearms reported in 2021. The vast majority were long guns such as rifles, while only 13 per cent were handguns, according to the report.
That suggests that handguns are being transported into Saskatchewan or manufactured locally, said Nogier.
The report is connected to the development of a Saskatoon Police Service gun crime strategy.
"When you start looking at national trends with respect to firearms and firearms activity, being a major centre, we know that there's going to be … firearms coming into our community and leaving our community," said Patrick Nogier, the service's superintendent in charge of the criminal investigation division.
Last year, police in the city recorded 168 incidents involving firearms.
While the number was the same as in 2020, it still reflects a 17 per cent increase compared to the five-year average of 143 occurrences, according to the report.
In 2021, officers responded to 54 gunshot incidents in Saskatoon, meaning incidents where someone actually pulled the trigger on weapon.
In 70 per cent of these events, there was a person who was shot, or being shot at.
The other 30 per cent include reports of gunshots that were not directed at a specific person or group, as well as shots fired at a home or business, the report says.
In 23 of the 54 incidents, police say they don't know the motivation behind firing the shots. However, 28 per cent of the gun crime events were gang motivated or associated, they say.
The report further showed that none of the seven homicides in the city in 2021 came as a result of illegal gun activity.
Handguns pose 'significant threat'
In total, police seized 590 firearms in 2021. Of those, 66 per cent are considered "crime guns" and 34 per cent were firearms turned over to police by the public without any association to a criminal event.
Of the 392 crime guns, 210 — 54 per cent — were handguns, the report says.
Those weapons are particularly dominant when it comes to crimes involving guns being fired, which Nogier said is concerning.
Twenty-two of the 54 gunshot incidents in 2021 involved handguns, compared to 10 involving rifles and 12 involving shotguns, the report says.
"Being able to access a handgun and hide a handgun and predominantly use a handgun poses a significant threat in the community," said Nogier.
"When you start seeing what's being taken and being reported as thefts from residences, we're not seeing a lot of handguns. So where are the handguns coming from?"
There were 39 stolen firearms reported in 2021. The vast majority were long guns such as rifles, while only 13 per cent were handguns, according to the report.
That suggests that handguns are being transported into Saskatchewan or manufactured locally, said Nogier.
Ghost guns an emerging problem
Another emerging concern across Canada are "ghost guns," or untraceable guns, due to 3D printing becoming more readily available to the public, the report says.
In January, officers in the city executed a search warrant for 3D-printed firearms and components.
"These are guns that do not show up and you cannot track or trace," said Nogier.
"We know that this is going to be a potential threat for us."
Looking south of the border, as an example, officers in California took roughly 35,000 firearms off the street in 2021, he said — 30 per cent of which were ghost guns.
"Historically what we experience in Canada is roughly 10 per cent of what they experience in the States with respects to gun activity," he said.
"In California, next year, they're anticipating that 50 per cent of the guns that they will be dealing with are ghost guns."
Nogier added this raises some alarms in regard to what might happen in this community.
The findings in the report generally raise concerns for police officers, he said.
"There is more of an awareness from our front-line personnel that when they do pull a vehicle over that's been suspected of being involved in criminal activity, the likelihood of guns has never been higher now than it has been in the last two decades," said Nogier.
But in spite of some of the troubling numbers in the report, he told CBC that it's not intended to create fear in the city.
"We want to make sure that we get in front of it rather than have to react to problems that might arise," he said.
Ghost gun proliferation needs federal attention - Brandon Sun
Legal status of 3d printed guns in Canada - LCP …
The Federal Government has already proposed tightening Canada’s firearm law by introducing gun bill C-71. The bill intends to enhance existing background checks along with changing how vendors document the sale of firearms. The bill does …
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