Newsday Backs Firearm Microstamping Legislation
Eric T. Schneiderman
May 11, 2009
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ISSUE:
- Codes
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COMMITTEE:
- Codes
An editorial in today’s Newsday calls on the State Senate to pass my legislation requiring firearm microstamping in New York State. Microstamping ensures that when a gun is fired, information identifying the make, model and serial number of the gun is stamped onto the cartridge as numbers and letters. This technology allows law enforcement officials to trace firearms through cartridge casings found at crime scenes, even if the crime weapon is never found. As the editors write in the piece, "while microstamping won't cost taxpayers anything, it would cost manufacturers a few dollars a gun...That's a small price to pay for a tool to help put violent criminals behind bars."
As the prime sponsor of this legislation in the Senate, I am committed to working with my colleagues in the Legislature to finally enact this common sense measure that would serve law enforcement officials and protect our streets.