Michigan Law Enforcement Agencies Can Solve More Gun Crimes Using Federal Intelligence Tools

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 9, 2024
Media Contact: Sabrina Miller, [email protected]

Michigan Law Enforcement Agencies Can Solve More Gun Crimes Using Federal Intelligence Tools

New Study Finds Only 35 Percent of Michigan Law Enforcement Agencies use resources that can clear gun crimes, save lives; study encourages more law enforcement participation

CHICAGO, IL - Most law enforcement agencies in Michigan are not using federal crime gun intelligence tools that can identify major gun traffickers, increase clearance rates, reduce bias in policing, and save lives, according to a new study released today by The Joyce Foundation.

Optimizing Crime Gun Intelligence found that low law enforcement participation rates, slow processing times by the federal agency overseeing the tools, and barriers created by congress are all factors preventing these resources from being fully utilized. However, more participation is encouraged by law enforcement as part of a multifaceted approach to reducing gun crimes, which are particularly difficult to solve, the study says

The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) oversees the four primary crime gun intelligence tools – eTrace, Collective Data Sharing (CDS), the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN), and the NIBIN Enforcement Support System (NESS) – resources that allow law enforcement to analyze crime guns, shell casings, and police records. But only 35% of law enforcement agencies in Michigan are signed up to participate in eTrace.

Of the agencies enrolled in eTrace, only 19 (out of approximately 600 statewide) share their gun trace data with other agencies statewide through CDS - meaning the vast majority of crime gun-related data never leaves the police department from which it was collected. That puts Michigan second to last in the entire country for CDS engagement. And, there are only 8 NIBIN terminals in the entire state which significantly slows down ballistic processing abilities.

“As gun violence continues to devastate communities across the state, it’s unacceptable for law enforcement agencies, Congress, and the ATF to leave resources on the table that can help save lives,” said Tim Daly, Director of the Joyce Foundation’s Gun Violence Prevention & Justice Reform Program. “Significant changes to ATF’s ‘crime gun intelligence tools’ are needed to lower processing times, increase ease of use, and ensure crime guns are traced and gun traffickers are identified. And more law enforcement partners in Michigan need to take advantage of these important tools that we know work in a fair and just way.”

Other key findings include:

• Lagging processing times: The average “standard” eTrace request by participating agencies takes approximately 16 days to complete, more than double the ATF’s goal of seven days. This delay means many crime guns are going untraced for more than two weeks after a shooting. Similar delays are found with NIBIN, where a lack of infrastructure and staffing has led to 40% of sites not meeting ATF’s two-day target for timely lead generation.

• Incomplete data for ballistic evidence: Shell casings for at least 130,000 out of 460,000 recovered crime guns nationwide were not entered into NIBIN in 2021, a number that is likely much higher for shell casings recovered without a gun.

• Congressional roadblocks: Overly-restrictive laws and chronic underfunding has limited ATF’s ability to drive usage with law enforcement and analyze data in a timely manner.

These findings have significant implications for new laws designed to increase accountability for serious gun crimes. The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA) made gun trafficking and straw purchasing federal crimes for the first time. But if gun crimes are not cleared – if shooters and traffickers are not identified using ATF’s tools – these new criminal provisions can’t actually be used.

“The ATF’s crime gun intelligence tools are an invaluable asset to law enforcement and the communities we serve in the fight to end gun violence,” said Washtenaw County Sheriff Jerry Clayton. “It is essential that law enforcement and policymakers in Lansing and D.C. work closely together to ensure we maximize the utilization and impact of these life-saving tools.”

Recommendations for Michigan and federal law enforcement agencies and policymakers to remedy the tools’ shortcomings and improve participation rates, include:

• The ATF should integrate data across the intelligence tools and increase awareness to provide a comprehensive, national platform for law enforcement agencies.

• Michigan should require all law enforcement agencies to enroll in and comprehensively use eTrace, CDS, NIBIN, and NESS. The three states with the highest eTrace participation rate (New Jersey, Virginia, and North Carolina) all have state laws requiring law enforcement agencies to trace all recovered crime guns.

• Congress should increase federal funding for ATF and the U.S. Department of Justice to support the expansion, improvement, and usage of crime gun intelligence tools.

“Advocates across our state are working to improve policies that will end gun violence and save lives, and that includes urging our state leaders and law enforcement officials to take immediate action to remedy the underutilization of these critical tools,” said Ryan Bates, executive director of End Gun Violence Michigan.

"Technology isn't going away. It is crucial to enhance scientific firearm intelligence tools to make them more effective and less biased in solving gun crimes, while also championing community-based solutions that address the root causes of gun violence," said Alia Harvey-Quinn, Founder and Executive Director, FORCE Detroit.

To read the full report and recommendations, please see HERE. To see a fully searchable database of agency participation, please see HERE.

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For media requests or questions, contact Sabrina Miller at [email protected].

For more than 25 years, the Joyce Foundation has been committed to supporting research, education, and policy solutions to reduce gun violence and help make communities safer. Our three-part strategy focuses on gun violence prevention, justice system reform and a new focus area of violence intervention.