Cops take aim at gun trafficking in New England
Set sights on tracking database
Boston is launching an unprecedented New England partnership to track down the guns that cross state lines and land in the hands of trigger-squeezing criminals in Hub neighborhoods.
Through a pilot program between the city, Burlington, Vt.; Worcester; and Hartford, Conn., a database is in the works that would provide current information detailing whether a gun confiscated by police had been used in previous crimes in one of the cities, Boston officials told the Herald.
“In Burlington ... they hear often that guns purchased in Vermont wind up in city streets in Boston, Hartford and Worcester,” said Christopher English, City Hall’s special projects manager. “We may find a gun in Boston that has a string of crimes related to it. But it may not show other crimes in other cities. We want to be able to have law enforcement agencies have all of the tools at their disposal to investigate and prosecute in gun crimes. … The more information that we can share, the better leads get generated.”
A majority of guns used in Boston originated out of state.
“You can go across the border, New Hampshire and Maine, and buy guns so easily. It hurts our efforts to get them off the streets. You can go to Georgia, you can go anywhere, and you buy them like you buy candy,” said Boston police Commissioner William B. Evans. “The kids are getting younger who have access to them. They’re all very powerful, semi-automatic weapons. It’s very rare right now that we get a revolver. … Sometimes there are 18 and 20 rounds. The kids will just fire them within seconds.”
Only 30 percent of the 3,764 guns recovered by Boston police between 2007 and 2013 were bought in the Bay State, a study by criminologist Anthony Braga found. Twenty percent of the guns used in crimes came from Maine and New Hampshire, while an additional 25 percent came from I-95 corridor states.
“One of the things we recognize is Massachusetts has some pretty strong gun laws on its books. But ...some states have less strict gun laws. It undermines the strength of our laws when the access to guns is so readily available next door,” English said.
Other programs in the pilot include creating a shelter in Worcester for opioid users to be able to turn guns in somewhere other than at the police department, and creating a link of the City of Boston’s website allowing licensed gun owners to register their guns, learn about gun safety and document sales and thefts.
The multi-city pilot hatched from the New England Gun Violence Summit led by Mayor Martin J. Walsh. The nonprofit Arms with Ethics received a $25,000 grant from the Boston Foundation that is funding the effort.
Boston has seen a surge of gun violence this year. According to police statistics, nonfatal shootings through Oct. 1 are up 16 percent compared to 2016, 165 compared with 142. Homicides have increased 40 percent, 42 compared with 30 at the same time last year. Of the 42 homicides, 32 were shootings, up from 23 fatal shootings at the same period in 2016.