New Jersey entered into a gun control and data sharing agreement with neighboring New York, Connecticut and Pennsylvania today, Oct. 7, that outlines procedures to share information about trafficked guns.
The regional agreement will help law enforcement agencies better track the sale and transportation of illegal guns which proponents say will help reduce gun violence by reducing the flow of firearms across state lines.
In a press conference announcing the memorandum of understanding, Gov. Phil Murphy called the agreement a “regional effort to protect our residents and to end the menace of senseless gun violence in our communities.”
Murphy cited internal state data that found 85% of crime guns—firearms used or suspected to be used in a crime—come from out of state. And three states account for 25% of the illegal guns recovered in NJ: South Carolina, Georgia and Florida, “where weak gun laws are ripe for exploitation,” Murphy said.
By sharing data, the hope is local law enforcement can better keep track of crime guns and curb the pipeline of such firearms in the region.
Said Kris Brown, president of the gun reform advocacy group Brady: “The governors of New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Connecticut have shown that they understand the importance of addressing the supply of crime guns in any comprehensive effort to prevent gun violence, and that regional cooperation is necessary to achieve this goal. This newest effort among these states is a historic regional data sharing agreement, and one that will tangibly help to reduce gun violence in the north east and beyond.”
Murphy said the agreement calls for states to share data on a “regular” basis, which not for nothing, seems like a pretty small, extremely reasonable thing to do that should’ve been happening for a while. So it goes with gun reform.