The ATF, charged with policing the gun industry, lets dealers get away with falsifying records and selling firearms without background checks.
The programs, policies, and people driving positive change in America’s gun violence problem.
American lives, shaped by guns.
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Background Checks
As Congress works out a potential package of gun reforms, we separate rhetoric from reality.
Gun Policy
Background checks and other policies poll well, but a slew of factors — like levels of voter enthusiasm and the popularity of gun rights — make the status quo hard to change.
Concealed Carry
The city could have power to designate “sensitive areas” where firearms would be forbidden. But no one’s saying where.
A law intended to make shooters more vulnerable to police bullets would not prohibit the sale of plate armor, the governor confirmed.
Ghost Guns
Under the new policy all firearms, including 3D-printed guns, must have serial numbers.
Extremism
New York has a red flag law, but it wasn’t invoked.
Community Violence
Civil liberties advocates worry the NYPD is repeating the mistakes it made with its gangs list — and that innocent people are being tracked without even knowing it.
The Biden administration is expected to detail its gun violence policy team for the first time. The move comes after reform groups questioned whether the staffing plan is sufficient to drive change.
Ask The Trace
A reader asks about a provision in the new Violence Against Women Act that requires the federal government to notify local officials when someone fails a background check.
Biden slams the firearms industry's liability shield at every turn. So why is the DOJ still defending it in court?
Reform groups are urging the president to create a federal office to coordinate efforts to address shootings. But he continues to avoid the subject.
An increase in gun violence poses a political challenge for new Mayor Eric Adams.
Gun reform advocates who supported Biden have been frustrated by the president’s failure to get any significant reform legislation through a Democratic Congress.
In Oxford's home state, Republicans have had a lock on the statehouse for decades, stymieing reforms despite broad public support.
The Industry
The development comes after an investigation by The Trace and NBC Bay Area found police are violating state law by not logging guns into the database so they can be traced.
