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Baltimore Wants to Know Where Guns Used in Crimes Come From. It’s Suing the ATF to Get the Data.

12.19.2023

Baltimore, MD (The Baltimore Banner) — Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott is suing the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for data about where guns used in city crimes originate, the latest move from city leaders to address the proliferation of firearms plaguing Baltimore.

Everytown for Gun Safety, a national nonprofit advocating for gun control, is providing legal assistance for the lawsuit that seeks five years of ATF “trace data,” which shows where a gun police recover was manufactured to where it was sold at retail. That information is regulated by a federal law, known as the Tiahrt Amendment, which only allows it to be shared for law enforcement purposes. Baltimore officials filed a Freedom of Information Act request for the data in September but were rejected.

More information regarding the specifics of this case can be found here.