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Resolutions Adopted at the
67th Annual Conference of Mayors
New Orleans, Louisiana
June 11-15, 1999 |
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CRIMINAL AND SOCIAL JUSTICE
FEDERAL LEGISLATION TO COMBAT ILLEGAL GUN SALES
WHEREAS, recent research indicates that 24 percent of the gun industry’s
production finds its way into criminal activity within eight years of manufacture; and
WHEREAS, a new Northeastern University study shows that 90 percent of the
increase in homicides from 1985 to 1993 involved crimes with handguns; and
WHEREAS, contrary to previous assertions that guns involved in criminal
activities were generally obtained illegally, it has now been demonstrated that the bulk
of guns involved in criminal activities were obtained legally or through straw buyers; and
WHEREAS, a number of other local governments throughout the country have also
filed lawsuits against the gun industry alleging negligent marketing, design and
distribution of guns in their communities; and
WHEREAS, the gun industry has maintained these practices pending judicial action
on the numerous city lawsuits resulting in continued illegal sales or straw purchases of
guns,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that while the cities’ litigation is working
its way through the judicial process, The U. S. Conference of Mayors supports federal
legislation to combat illegal trafficking in firearms that would:
Prohibit an individual from purchasing more than one handgun per month;
Make it unlawful for a gun seller to sell a gun to an individual if the seller knows, or
has a reasonable cause to believe, that the individual intends to use, possess or transfer
the firearm unlawfully;
Require gun dealers and/or sellers to report a record of all gun sales to the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms within one week of the sale. These records would then be
required to be retained by ATF for 10 years and would be open and available for Federal,
state and local law enforcement officials to prevent crime and to investigate crime after
it has occurred.
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