Police Departments Fail to Regularly Trace Crime Guns
We set out to determine how domestic killers in South Carolina got their guns. Instead, we found evidence of a widespread breakdown of critical crime-fighting intel.
Ann Givens
New Federal Grants Seek to Boost Prosecutions of Gun Ballistics Cases
A national database of shell casings has been deployed unevenly. So the DOJ is encouraging lawyers who want to use it to link and crack cases.
A Powerful Database Helps Solve Gun Crimes. Only Two States Require Police to Use It.
New Jersey and Delaware have laws mandating that investigators use an innovative ballistics system called NIBIN. The other 48 states don’t — and their reticence makes it harder to ID shooters everywhere.
Watch How Crime Labs Use a Tool Called NIBIN to Crack Gun Cases
If you’re curious about potential solutions for the nation’s gun violence crisis, watch this crime-fighting tool in action.
A Scrappy California Crime Lab Is Cracking More Gun Cases — Thanks to Technology Bigger Agencies Misuse
Propelled by a new, no-nonsense boss, Contra Costa County ditched the excuses that keep many law enforcement agencies from taking better advantage of a crime-fighting database called NIBIN.
FBI to Add Major Law Enforcement Database to Gun Background Check System
The bureau is getting ready to tap National Data Exchange and its 400 million records to help screen gun buyers. Experts say it would have blocked the Charleston church shooter from obtaining his murder weapon.
Bank Withheld $1.6 Million From Top Bump Stock Maker After Las Vegas Shooting
In a lawsuit, Slide Fire accuses Merrick Bank of holding its money "hostage." The financial institution says it had to hedge its risk.
Inside One State’s Effort to Report More Mental Health Records to the Gun Background Check System
Prompted by a 2007 law, an administrator at the Iowa Department of Public Safety personally oversaw the review of 125,000 state mental health case files to figure out who should be prohibited from owning guns.
The Gun Background Check System Is Overburdened and Understaffed, DOJ Budget Request Shows
Experts say the shortage leaves NICS vulnerable to mistakes and workers at risk of burnout.
How the Fix NICS Act Could Strengthen the Gun Background Check System
A primer on the rare federal gun safety bill drawing bipartisan support — including from President Trump and the NRA.
Ballistics Imaging Helped Phoenix Police Solve 9 Fatal Shootings. Why Don’t More Departments Make Better Use of It?
The technology — a national database of ballistic images that matches guns and shell casings recovered by police — is not new, but underutilized.
The ATF Takes a First Step Toward Reclassifying Bump Stocks
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives took what could be the…