Gun trafficking and straw purchasing intentionally undermine federal and state background check laws and drive the illegal gun market.
The patchwork of gun laws across the country makes it easy for guns to move from states with weak gun safety laws to states with strong gun regulations. Gun trafficking is the movement of guns from the legal to the illegal market, often resulting in their use in crime. Straw purchasing is the act of purchasing a firearm on behalf of another person – sometimes for a specific person, and other times to illegally resell the gun for a profit – often to individuals legally prohibited from purchasing a gun themselves. Even if the intended user relying on a straw purchaser is not a prohibited possessor, they are nevertheless seeking to evade record-keeping requirements that make it easier for law enforcement to solve gun crimes.
GUN TRAFFICKING AND STRAW PURCHASES UNDERMINE THE STRONG FIREARM SALES LAWS ENACTED BY STATES ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
As shown by domestic trafficking patterns, states that close loopholes in federal laws and otherwise strengthen gun sale regulations effectively reduce rates of trafficking. For example, in New Jersey where there are robust gun safety laws, over 80% of guns recovered in the commission of a crime were purchased in another state. In Newark, NJ, almost half of recovered crime guns were first sold in five states with weaker gun safety laws – Georgia, the Carolinas, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. Additionally, the majority of crime gun recoveries in New York City, Chicago, Baltimore, and Los Angeles — all cities in states with strong firearm regulations — were trafficked from other states with weaker gun safety laws.
The data shows the opposite for states with lax gun laws. For example, about 80% of guns recovered in Georgia, which has extremely weak gun safety laws, were sourced from within the state. Conversely, 80% of guns recovered in New York state are sourced out-of-state – with Georgia topping the list. In fact, Georgia was also the top national exporter of crime guns to other states in 2021 and 2022. And between 2017 and 2021, almost half of traced guns recovered out-of-state nationwide were sourced from only ten states: Georgia, Texas, Arizona, Florida, Virginia, Indiana, the Carolinas, Alabama, and Mississippi.
These firearms enter the illegal market through a variety of channels, which include straw purchases; non-compliant and/or irresponsible gun dealers; unlicensed sellers that do not conduct background checks; and theft.
of guns recovered in the commission of a crime were purchased in another state. Additionally, the majority of crime gun recoveries in New York City, Chicago, Baltimore, and Los Angeles – all cities in states with strong firearm regulations – were trafficked from other states with weaker gun laws.
Unfortunately, some gun dealers willfully ignore clear red flags that make it obvious that straw purchases are occurring. For example, some sell to straw purchasers who are either accompanied by prohibited individuals for whom they are buying the guns or send photos to and text those individuals throughout the entire transaction; and some sell guns in transactions where one person fills out the paperwork for the firearms while another pays for those same guns in cash. When a dealer completes an obvious straw purchase while deliberately ignoring such red flags, a dealer violates a number of firearm laws either directly or as an accomplice with the straw purchaser and/or the person being supplied by the straw purchaser. Responsible gun dealers train their employees to look at all the circumstances surrounding a transaction, collectively and in context, to determine if a straw sale is occurring.
A 2020 survey study found that 31% of Baltimore men involved in the underground firearms market reported they knew of gun shops where employees sold guns off the books or did not require background checks. Other dealers choose to engage in risky transactions, overlooking known indicators of straw purchases and other illegal sales, some selling dozens of handguns, many of the same make and model, to a single purchaser in a short time period.
Firearm purchases from unlicensed sellers are another source of guns entering into the illegal market. Unlicensed sellers are not presently required, as a matter of federal law, to run background checks on buyers. Requiring background checks on all gun sales can reduce the number of firearms that are diverted to the illegal market.
Additionally, research shows that gun thefts and bulk purchases are other contributors to the diversion of firearms from the legal market to the illegal market. Unlicensed sellers often buy guns in bulk in order to maximize their profits. Placing reasonable limits on the number of guns one individual can buy in a short period of time is shown to reduce trafficking. After Virginia introduced a one-gun-a-month law in 1993, Virginia’s status as a top source state of trafficked guns was effectively reduced. In the aftermath of the law, there was a significant reduction in the number of crime guns recovered in other states traced back to Virginia. Conversely, recoveries of Virginia-sourced guns skyrocketed by 246% in Maryland and 281% in Washington, D.C. in the decade after Virginia repealed this law in 2012. Virginia recently reinstituted the law, but it may take several years before its impact is seen.
Dealers who use best practices can help prevent guns from being diverted into the illegal market. Examples include but are not necessarily limited to training and supervising employees to detect and turn down potential straw sales as well as to notify law enforcement, keeping firearm inventory locked securely, examining a purchaser’s prior purchase history at point-of-sale, and promptly reporting bulk purchases to ATF. Dealers who have lax business practices may be inadvertently or wilfully aiding in gun trafficking. Some lax practices may also rise to the level of violating federal regulations. To explore a national database of dealers with violations visit our Gun Store Transparency Project.
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