Sick of gun violence? Blame Congress

[hammAR]

http://www.sacbee.com/110/story/323526.html

Sick of gun violence? Blame Congress, not cities

With gun lobby ascendant in Washington, cities try their best with ineffective tools
Faced with escalating gun violence, the Sacramento City Council obviously felt the need to act. So last week the council voted unanimously to require gun owners to report thefts of firearms within 48 hours of becoming aware of the theft and to require firearms dealers to thumb-print and electronically record the names and addresses of people who buy ammunition.

While it was the right thing to do, the council's vote will not solve the growing gun menace that Sacramento faces. Similar measures enacted in other cities, including Los Angeles, San Francisco and Oakland, have not reduced gun crimes.

People and guns move from city to city and state to state. To be effective, gun control laws must be expanded to include neighboring local jurisdictions and states.

Such measures as the council's are not always enforced. They require local district attorneys to go after not just people who commit gun crimes but those who traffic illegally in guns.

Most important, to offer any hope of relief from the violence, local gun control efforts must have the backing of the federal government.

As Sacramento Bee reporter Crystal Carreon documented in her special report, "Sacramento's Killer Guns," federal law has been a major impediment to local efforts to keep guns out of the hands of criminals.

The Tiahrt Amendment, named after U.S. Rep. Todd Tiahrt, the Kansas Republican who first tacked it onto a Justice Department appropriations bill in 2003, bars law enforcement officials from sharing information about gun trafficking trends.

Soon after it was was passed, the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives stopped producing annual reports on guns used in crimes in 50 metropolitan areas. Police departments were unable to access data about gun crime trends.

The U.S. Conference of Mayors has made repeal of this amendment its top priority, but Congress has moved in the opposite direction.

The House Appropriations Committee voted last month to keep restrictions in the 2008 Justice Department appropriations bill. Two California Republicans, Reps. Jerry Lewis from San Bernardino County and Ken Calvert of Riverside County, voted for gun traffickers and against local law enforcement officials and mayors who seek to repeal provisions that prevent their local cops from knowing and sharing information about trends in illegal gun sales.

More than a dozen Democrats joined Republicans on the House committee to restrict law enforcement's ability to protect the public.

The Senate Appropriations Committee adopted an even more restrictive version of the original Tiahrt Amendment, one that would make it a crime for police to disclose information. Five Democratic senators joined 14 Republicans to send that measure to the Senate floor.

Against this backdrop, criticism of local officials for attempting to find solutions is misplaced. The trouble is in Washington, not in city council chambers.

The next time someone in California is killed by a criminal using an illegally obtained firearm, their survivors should contact Congress, including Reps. Lewis and Calvert, to ask them to explain why they voted to deprive police of the tools they need to combat illegal gun sales.

[GregM]

Maybe I'm just stupid, but ...

What's the point of blocking access to BATF records, or restricting exchange of information among law enforcement agencies?

[hammAR]

Greg per the following, can you guess why....add anti-gun Mayors (think Bloomberg) and trial lawyers.....

The so-called "Tiahrt Amendment" is an appropriations rider that restricts cities' access to and use of ATF trace data.
These amendments have become increasingly restrictive since Fiscal Year 2003.

The current (FY 2006) Tiahrt Amendment does five things:

* Prevents ATF from publishing reports that use trace data to analyze the flow of crime guns nationally.
* Limits local governments' access to ATF trace data.
* Prevents law enforcement from accessing trace data outside its geographic jurisdiction.
* Generally prevents law enforcement agencies from sharing trace data with one another.
* Prevents trace data from being used as evidence in any state license revocation, civil lawsuit, or other administrative proceeding (unless filed by ATF).

TBDF...........

[BRIT_in_the_weeds]

HAMMAR.jpg (21.77 KB) Viewed 3716 times

[hammAR]

I don't have red hair Brit, actually I don't have that much hair anyways..................
SO I am going to assume that this is not a shot...........

Else, keep your eyes on the tall grass..........

.

[BRIT_in_the_weeds]

I've got a pee smelling sofa watching my 6

[hammAR]

Don't do 6's,
prefer 10-2.................

.

[plblark]

I've got a pee smelling sofa watching my 6

That's funny right there.

[selurcspi]

I don't have red hair Brit, actually I don't have that much hair anyways..................
SO I am going to assume that this is not a shot...........

Else, keep your eyes on the tall grass..........

.

hammAR, you don't have that many teeth either

[tullibee]

and he's NOT that handsome either!

[Srigs]

I don't have red hair Brit, actually I don't have that much hair anyways..................
SO I am going to assume that this is not a shot...........

Else, keep your eyes on the tall grass..........

.

hammAR, you don't have that many teeth either

Boy I guess it is beat up on HammAR day!

I'll pile on. The chimp smiles more!

[GregM]

Greg per the following, can you guess why....add anti-gun Mayors (think Bloomberg) and trial lawyers.....

The so-called "Tiahrt Amendment" is an appropriations rider that restricts cities' access to and use of ATF trace data.
These amendments have become increasingly restrictive since Fiscal Year 2003.

The current (FY 2006) Tiahrt Amendment does five things:

* Prevents ATF from publishing reports that use trace data to analyze the flow of crime guns nationally.
* Limits local governments' access to ATF trace data.
* Prevents law enforcement from accessing trace data outside its geographic jurisdiction.
* Generally prevents law enforcement agencies from sharing trace data with one another.
* Prevents trace data from being used as evidence in any state license revocation, civil lawsuit, or other administrative proceeding (unless filed by ATF).

TBDF...........

Thanks --- I really missed the bus on this one. A visit to the NRA website helped.

[hammAR]

You are welcome Greg......

Ignore these other guys, they are just jealous, yes, I am older than a couple, but not most, and far better looking, in better shape, have more guns, and have an IQ larger than any two of them combined............

and Greg, since you were polite, I will not say anything about missing the bus.....the short one...

.

[JDR]

But that is his thoughtful look and charming smile.

[BRIT_in_the_weeds]

You are welcome Greg......

Ignore these other guys, they are just jealous, yes, I am older than a couple, but not most, and far better looking, in better shape, have more guns, and have an IQ larger than any two of them combined............

and Greg, since you were polite, I will not say anything about missing the bus.....the short one... :P

.

I teased my son like that, especially picking him up at school in the bright yellow H2