Boston City Council to weigh ordinance that would track gun trafficking

The Boston City Council is expected to consider an ordinance Wednesday that would task police with compiling annual data on firearms trafficking, an illegal activity that the body says is a major contributor to gun violence.

City Councilor Ricardo Arroyo, chair of the Committee on Government Operations, filed a report Monday recommending that the ordinance, with amendments, “ought to pass” at this week’s Council meeting.

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“Passage of this ordinance in its amended draft will provide data and information to help law enforcement and policymakers develop solutions and recommendations to reduce and prevent illegal gun trafficking, as well as recommendations to combat gun violence in the city,” Arroyo wrote in a letter to his colleagues.

Arroyo said the amendments he put forward are aimed at clarifying language to ensure that the data the Boston Police Department collects is more reliable, and recognizing that the department is prohibited, per federal partnerships, from sharing certain information publicly.

Other amendments would require police to share an annual gun trafficking report with the Boston Public Health Commission, in addition to the mayor and City Council, and include policy recommendations and “key takeaways” to supplement the data, Arroyo wrote.

The ordinance, co-sponsored by Council President Ed Flynn and Councilor Brian Worrell, states that only 10% of firearms recovered at city crime scenes in 2021 were purchased in Massachusetts, while the rest were brought in by 18 other states.

Among the data police would be required to submit, in an annual report, is whether the firearm was connected to a crime; where it originated; the date it was seized, surrendered and last sold legally; whether it was a ghost gun or created using a 3-D printer; and registration information of the dealer.

At a Sept. 18 hearing, Boston Police representatives stated that while there have been fewer shooting incidents and victims this year, there’s been a rise in the number of guns taken off the streets.

According to the committee report, police said 25% more crime guns have been recovered, most of which were stolen.

Of particular concern to BPD, the department told the Council, are privately-manufactured ghost and 3-D printed guns, which have proven difficult to track.

“The department certainly supports the spirit of this ordinance and looks forward to sharing additional data with the Council and the public, to both highlight the ongoing issues illegal firearms present in our community and to draw further attention to the good work our officers do on a daily basis to get illegal guns off our streets,” Police Superintendent Felipe Colon said at the hearing.

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