Question: Sometimes the evidence unit receives a weapon, from a crime scene or found by a citizen, and we are unable to locate an owner. Is there anyway to follow-up on who purchased the gun or who might own the gun?

Yes. The fastest way to facilitate a firearms trace is by calling the local Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms office for assistance. ATF can help facilitate the trace by providing ATF Form 7520.5 (or the current version). This form when completed and submitted expedites traces. ATF has a great program for tracing weapons and locating owners. In the event of a major crime, where time is essential in finding the owner, the request can be submitted by phone. To avoid overwhelming the system, it is requested that only the most urgent of requests be submitted via the telephone. For an emergency trace contact the National Tracing Center at 1 (304) 274-4100. No ATF office nearby? The National Training Center can answer questions or mail forms when contacted on the business line 1 (800) 788-7133.

ATF Agents are wonderful contacts for help in the status of a weapon. For example: Has the firearm been made fully automatic or not?  Is the seized weapon banned by federal law?  Does the individual claiming the weapon meet the federal guidelines for prohibited status?

Tracing weapons is an excellent crime fighting tool. It can be used to determine legitimate ownership and as an aide to deny possession of a weapon from a prohibited person. 

Excerpts from an article published in the FBI: 
Law Enforcement Bulletin by Tom Hill point out some of the possibilities:

On March 30, 1981, President Ronald Reagan was shot while leaving a Washington, DC, hotel. Secret Service agents immediately arrested the assailant and recovered the handgun used in the shooting. Within minutes, the National Firearms Tracing Center of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) was contacted to run a trace of a Roehm, model RG14, serial number L731332. From a telephone call to the manufacturer in Miami, FL, it was learned the handgun was made in 1980 and shipped to a North Carolina wholesaler. The wholesaler's records showed the handgun had been sold to Rocky's Pawn Shop in Dallas. A subsequent check of the pawn shop's records revealed the gun had been sold on October 13, 1980, to a 25 year-old who identified himself as John Hinckley, Jr. It took 14 minutes for ATF to trace the handgun from the manufacturer to the suspect arrested. Not all traces are as spectacular as this one, but many traces do assist in solving crimes.

Since 1972, AFT has provided firearms tracing free of charge to all Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies. This service is not restricted by the boundaries of the United States; it is also available to international police agencies such as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Scotland Yard.

The success of any trace depends on the cooperation of firearms manufacturers, importers, wholesalers, and retail dealers who provide ATF with the information needed to perform the trace. However, as one firearms control supervisor for a gun manufacturer stated, "We see tracing as an important part of our business and we feel that the capability to efficiently trace weapons goes a long way toward helping law enforcement agencies ensure public safety." Through its licensing authority, ATF is the only Federal agency authorized access to records of manufacture, importation, or sale.

ATF routinely traces firearms used to commit crimes from the manufacturer to the last retail purchase. From the information obtained by the trace, such as name, address, physical description, and age, the investigator has a starting point from which to track the suspect.

ATF has developed contacts with gun manufacturers throughout the United States, Europe, South America, and Asia. When a request to trace a firearm is received from a law enforcement agency, ATF personnel contact the manufacturer and give the description of the firearm in question. When possible, since all firearms are not traceable due to age, the manufacturer supplies ATF with the name and address of the wholesaler/Importer to obtain the retailer's name and address. This process continues until no further trace is possible. Many times, a trace may go no further than the manufacturer (because the firearm is untraceable), but it may also lead to the perpetrator of a crime. 

A frequent result of ATF traces is the return of a stolen firearm to its lawful owner. It is not uncommon for the tracer to determine that a firearm had been stolen but was never reported to the police or was reported but not entered in the stolen gun file. 

Tracing has become increasingly successful as a tool in investigating narcotics traffickers. A TF, as well as other Federal and State Agencies, use firearms tracing to aid them in both investigative and prosecutive states of cases involving illegal drug distribution. A prime example of this is seen in ATF's participation in the President's Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces, set up in 13 regional task force core cities. In the first 18 months of this effort, ATF developed 146 criminal cases involving 210 defendants and the seizure of 1,171 firearms, including fully automatic weapons and silencers. Firearms traces have identified narcotic dealers foreign and domestic), associates, and accomplices, as well as those who also illegally traffic in firearms. 

The significance of this service is shown in the following successful traces:

On October 22, 1984, in Mesa, AZ a police detective requested ATF's assistance in tracing a firearm which had been left behind at the scene of an attempted rape. The detective advised that they had a suspect in custody but that the suspect denied owning any firearm. Two days later, ATF identified the recovered gun as being purchased by a California resident The information obtained confirmed that the gun purchaser was the suspect in custody.

The trace of a weapon recovered at the scene of a robbery in Austin, TX, led to the identification and arrest of a suspect The firearm was located in the alleyway behind the victim's establishment and was traced to a retail outlet in Brownsville, TX. A check of the store's records revealed the suspect was the person who purchased the firearm.

On October17, 1984, the 8t Paul, MN, Ramsey County, and Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) narcotics task force requested the trace of 11 firearms seized from the residence of a narcotics violator during the execution of a search warrant for evidence of drug violations. On October 26, 1984, it was determined that most of the firearms were untraceable due to their age or their sale at estate auctions. One 12-gauge pump shotgun was traced to a suburban area of 8t Paul, MN, entered Minnesota in 1978. Contact with the last known owner of the firearm revealed that the firearm and four others had been stolen in a house burglary in March 1984. Five firearms recovered during the search had been reported stolen to the local police, but no serial numbers were available for entry into the stolen gun file. As a result of the gun trace, additional felony charges are being brought against the narcotics violator for receiving and concealing stolen property. 

On November 14, 1984, in response to a request for assistance from the Corona Police Department, AFT traced a .22-caliber magnum revolver believed to be the weapon used in four murder/robberies in the Orange County area. The firearm trace revealed that the weapon in question had been stolen on October 13, 1984, from a Santa Ana gun store. The gun dealer stated that a male subject entered his store and requested to look at the .22-caliber magnum, then fled the store with the firearm. A photo of a suspect in the murders was shown to the gun store owner who identified him as the individual who ran from the store with the firearm.

Since 1972, the National Firearms Tracing Center has traced over 1, 000, 000 firearms with over 50 percent of all traces being requested by State and local law enforcement agencies. A prior evaluation of successful traces revealed that 81 percent were of some value to law enforcement. Even more significantly, 54 percent aided in solving a crime or assisted in apprehending or indicting suspects.

Few industries can boast of providing more assistance and cooperation to law enforcement in the fight against crime and violence than firearms manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers. Tracing is an important investigative tool in solving a variety of crimes involving firearms.