eTRACE COLLECTIVE DATA SHARING
Pennsylvania Chiefs of Police Association 3905 North Front Street, Harrisburg, PA 17110 • Tel: (717) 236-1059 • Fax: (717) 236-0226 • Web Site: http://www.pachiefs.org Albert Walker President Chief of Police Hanover Township
David Steffen 2nd Vice President Chief of Police Northern Lancaster County Regional
John English 1st Vice President Chief of Police Edgeworth Borough
William Richendrfer Secretary - 2020 Chief of Police South Centre Township
Fred Harran 3rd Vice President Director of Public Safety Bensalem Township
Royce Engler 4th Vice President Chief of Police Wright Township
Ken Truver Treasurer - 2020 Chief of Police Castle Shannon Borough
Scott L. Bohn
Executive Director
Gun violence, illegal gun possession and firearms trafficking affect all communities in Pennsylvania. Gun violence is responsible for killing, on average, 1,500 Pennsylvanians per year. Straw purchases and crime guns are fueling this epidemic. As every gun starts out as legal, it is incumbent upon law enforcement to trace how a crime gun was illegally transferred to a prohibited person. By tracing firearms used in crimes, we can identify the heart of the problem. Law enforcement’s mission does not end with investigating and prosecuting the prohibited possessor. State law requires local law enforcement to trace every crime gun through the ATF, report recoveries to the Pennsylvania State Police and conduct an investigation into how the gun was obtained by the illegal possessor: 18 Pa.C.S. § 6127 (a) Illegal possession. Upon confiscating or recovering a firearm from the possession of anyone who is not permitted by Federal or State law to possess a firearm, a local law enforcement agency shall use the best available information, including a firearms trace where necessary, to determine how and from where the person gained possession of the firearm. (b) Tracing. Local law enforcement shall use the National Tracing Center of the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in complying with subsection (a). (c) Notification. Local law enforcement agencies shall advise the Pennsylvania State Police of all firearms that are recovered in accordance with this section.
PA CHIEFS OF POLICE ASSOCIATION
In 2007, the Pennsylvania Uniform Firearm Act was amended to include the above “Firearms Tracing” provision. 18 Pa.C.S. § 6127 states local law enforcement, upon recovering a firearm from someone not permitted to possess by State or Federal law shall trace the subject firearm. By complying with this law and comprehensively tracing firearms through ATF and notifying PSP, it allows federal, state and local law enforcement to identify gun traffickers, build intelligence, strategically stop trafficking pipelines, and ensure straw purchasers are not legally permitted to buy guns again. The easiest and most efficient way to comprehensively trace crime guns is by using the ATF’s National Tracing Center’s eTrace system (https://etrace.atf.gov/etrace/). ATF’s Electronic Tracing System (eTrace) is an internet-based system that allows participating law enforcement agencies to submit required firearm traces to the ATF. Authorized users can receive firearm trace results via this same internet web site, search a database of all firearm traces submitted by their individual agency, and perform analytical functions. Opting in to collective data sharing allows more effective use of the database and allows for participating agencies to link purchasers and recoveries that cross county lines. To request an eTrace account please contact the ATF’s National Tracing Center Customer Service Group at 244 Needy Road, Martinsburg, WV 25405, 1-800-788-7133 or fax 1-800-578-7223 or email at traceadmin@atf.govetraceadmin@atf.gov.
Al Coghill – 2022 Chief of Police Cannonsburg Borough
James Sabath – 2022 Chief of Police Newtown Borough
Thomas Gross – 2022 Chief of Police (Ret.) York Area Regional Police
Larry Palmer – 2022 Chief of Police Palmer Township
Mark Toomey – 2021 Chief of Police Upper Providence Township
James Adams – 2021 Chief of Police Upper Allen Township
Michael Vogel – 2021 Chief of Police Allegheny County Housing Authority
Jason Loper - 2022 Chief of Police Fairview Township
Tim Trently - 2022 Chief of Police Archbald Borough
David Splain - 2022 Chief of Police Nether Providence Township
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