City firearm seizures drop 25 percent (Baltimore)

[davepc]

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/baltimore_city/bal-md.ci.guns04oct04,0,7081652.story

Despite an increased emphasis on seizing illegal firearms, Baltimore police have taken about 25 percent fewer guns off the street this year and are making fewer gun arrests.

City law enforcement officials said they were unsure how to account for the decline, which has police on pace to recover far fewer illegal guns than in previous years, but were in agreement that it's probably not because there are significantly fewer guns on the streets. Instead, they said it is more likely that criminals are getting the message not to carry guns in public, which could be a factor in this year's drops in homicides and nonfatal shootings.

"The sentiment is that there is an acknowledgment amongst criminals in particular that they can't be just walking around with illegal weapons," said Sterling Clifford, a spokesman for the Police Department and Mayor Sheila Dixon. "They're still out there, but there are fewer people walking around with a gun tucked under their waistband or under the driver's seat of a car."

Police had recovered about 2,750 guns at this point last year, even though the push to crack down on illegal guns did not begin in earnest until late May, after Dixon unveiled a new crime-fighting strategy. With the philosophy in place for over a year, police have seized 2,104 guns this year.

If that pace holds up, police will have recovered the smallest number of guns since 2004. According to department statistics, police have seized an average of 3,425 illegal firearms annually over the past seven years, before gun seizures were made a priority.

[spin]

1. Maybe cracking down on criminals with illegal guns is the answer...

City law enforcement officials said they were unsure how to account for the decline, which has police on pace to recover far fewer illegal guns than in previous years, but were in agreement that it's probably not because there are significantly fewer guns on the streets. Instead, they said it is more likely that criminals are getting the message not to carry guns in public, which could be a factor in this year's drops in homicides and nonfatal shootings.

Sounds to me like a far better solution than banning honest citizens from owning firearms. Criminals will always be able to own guns, but perhaps we can discourage them from carrying them.

[old mark]

2. Spin, so you are saying it's the CRIMINALS causing all the crime...

Hmmm, a new concept, especially in Baltimore. Maybe it will spread to DC and even Philly.


mark

[spin]

3. Isn't it amazing how few posters have replied...

I seriously believe that the people who post and reply on this board are interested in reducing gun related violence in the United States. It really doesn't matter which side of the issue they support.

It would seem that both groups would agree that people who illegally carry weapons on our streets are a serious problem. Good arguments can be presented by both the anti-gun group and the pro-gun group over the issue of what firearms a citizen should be allowed to own or even if a citizen should be allowed to own firearms. Still there should be little disagreement that criminals who carry weapons are by far the most dangerous members of our society.

So you would think both sides would applaud the efforts of Baltimore to crack down on illegal weapons.

"The sentiment is that there is an acknowledgment amongst criminals in particular that they can't be just walking around with illegal weapons," said Sterling Clifford, a spokesman for the Police Department and Mayor Sheila Dixon. "They're still out there, but there are fewer people walking around with a gun tucked under their waistband or under the driver's seat of a car."

What we have here is gun control that actually works. The streets are in Baltimore are safer. We can all argue about what further gun control measures makes sense, but if we followed the example of Baltimore we could make a big first step to solving the firearm problem we face. The really neat thing is that we don't have to pass new laws, we ca just enforce the laws we already have.

Why don't we all agree that this is indeed a good idea and attempt to influence the people we elect to adopt the Baltimore plan nationwide. If we do this, we might actually see a reduction in violent crime. Sounds like a good plan to me.