A new measure before the U.S. Congress is designed to enhance safeguards for protected firearm trace data, which the weaponized Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) misused under the Biden Administration.
The 2003 Tiahrt Amendment prohibits the release of firearm trace data to anyone other than law enforcement or prosecutors investigating a crime. HR 1698, the Law Enforcement Protection and Privacy Act, would ensure firearm trace data remains safeguarded from misuse that threatens investigations and lives.
The author of the measure, U.S. Rep. Clay Higgins, R-Louisiana, said the measure is important and must be addressed now.
“The unlawful disclosure of sensitive firearm trace data greatly jeopardizes criminal investigations and puts law-abiding citizens at risk,” Rep. Higgins said in a press release announcing the measure. “This legislation is crucial in protecting the integrity of ongoing criminal investigations and the many lives of those involved, as well as the Second Amendment rights of every American.”
When a firearm is recovered at a crime scene or criminal arrest, a police department may forward information to the ATF to track the chain of custody of a firearm through the licensed distribution system to the original retail purchaser. The ATF then sends back the information to the reporting agency so they can use it in a criminal case, if warranted. ATF also uses the data in support of illegal firearms trafficking investigations.
However, the Biden Administration misused the data in “name-and-shame” efforts to malign firearm retailers, despite ATF’s longstanding admonition noting that trace data “in no way suggests that either the federal firearms licensed dealer (FFL) or the first purchaser has committed criminal acts.”
The introduction of the bill has met with quick approval by a number of pro-freedom organizations, including the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the firearm industry trade association. Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF senior vice president and general counsel said that now is the time to pass the measure.
“This legislation is long overdue and necessary to send a strong message that there will now be consequences for those who would unlawfully disclose law enforcement sensitive firearm trace data that jeopardize ongoing criminal investigations and puts the lives of law enforcement officers, undercover agents and witnesses at risk,” Keane said in a press release detailing the legislation. “It will prevent the unauthorized release of trace data by ATF and others to gun control groups and agenda-driven media outlets who have misused the data to launch ‘name-and-shame’ attacks to smear the reputation of law-abiding members of the firearm industry. We thank Congressman Clay Higgins for his leadership in protecting the integrity of ongoing criminal investigations and the lives of law enforcement officers and witnesses including licensed retailers and their reputations in their communities.”
The National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA) also weighed in on the proposal.
“Last year, the Biden Administration colluded with its anti-gun allies to publicly name and shame lawful firearms dealers in a clear violation of the Tiahrt amendment,” said John Commerford, NRA-ILA executive director. “We thank Rep. Higgins for introducing the Law Enforcement Protection and Privacy Act to safeguard American businesses from unnecessary reputational damage and protect the integrity of ongoing criminal investigations.”
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