In a decisive move to tighten gun control, Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell and New York's top legal eagle, Letitia James, have rallied a powerhouse coalition of 21 attorneys general. They are throwing their weight behind an ATF proposal aimed squarely at clamping down on unchecked gun sales and reining in the flow of illegal firearms across state lines. This comes in the wake of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, as the ATF is working to spell out what it means to be "engaged in the business" of gun dealing, mandating licensing and background checks for sellers.
The stakes are high. The unlicensed gun trade has opened the door wide for individuals barred from legal purchase to easily arm themselves, posing a dire threat to public safety. AG Campbell noted, "I am proud to co-lead this multistate coalition in support of ATF’s proposal to expand background check requirements for buyers of firearms, which will take us one meaningful step closer to ensuring that each one of us can live free from gun violence," as per the Massachusetts government's press release. These unlicensed sales are not exclusive to shady back-alley deals but are brazenly conducted at gun shows and through the anonymity of the internet, places where accountability is often an afterthought.
Statistics paint a grim picture as recent ATF findings revealed a sharp 19% rise in firearms, originally from gun shows, later used in crimes between 2017 and 2021. The coalition is putting pressure on the federal government to address loopholes that are currently giving free reign to unlicensed dealers, particularly at gun shows and across the digital marketplace.
The proposed changes are expected to bring significant firepower to the efforts of local and state law enforcement agencies. By tightening regulations, officials will be better equipped to track gun sales, scrutinize gun dealers, and trace firearms implicated in crimes. The attorneys general collective has also put forth recommendations to bolster ATF enforcement, specifically targeting online gun sellers and those liquidating inventories of unlicensed dealers—a prevalent issue in the pipeline of firearms linked to crime scenes.
Joining the push for more stringent control are attorneys general from states spanning coast to coast, including Arizona, California, Colorado, and a trove of others, as well as representatives from the District of Columbia. The charge in Massachusetts, according to the state's press release, is being led by Christine Doktor and Deputy Director Ryan Mingo of the AG’s Gun Violence Prevention Unit, both slamming the gavel on illegal gun trafficking in pursuit of safer communities.
