New York Attorney General releases report on gun trafficking

NEW YORK (WABC) -- A new report shows roughly three-quarters of the guns used to commit crimes in New York state come from states with weak gun laws.

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced the details of a first of its kind gun trafficking study Tuesday, and showed off an interactive web tool to illustrate gun trafficking into the state.

Click here to check out the tool.

From 2010 to 2015, police in New York seized almost 53,000 guns used in crimes, the report showed.

90 percent of the handguns came from six states along Interstate 95.

74 percent of all guns used to commit crimes come from out of state.

86 percent of recovered handguns come from out of state.

"The message is that New York's laws, which require permits for handguns, are working," said Schneiderman. "The bad guys aren't even trying to buy guns in New York. They know they have to get them from gun traffickers or travel to other states with weaker gun laws. We're being undermined at every turn by states who prioritize gun commerce over public safety."

States where most of the guns come from include Pennsylvania, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, Florida and Ohio, said Schneiderman.

The interactive tool will allow local leaders and community activists to look at the kinds of guns coming into their communities and what they might be able to do to help stem the tide.

The report is intended to pressure the federal government and state governments to enact stricter gun control laws.

"It's just too easy for a gun to get into the hands of someone who shouldn't have it," Schneiderman said at a Manhattan news conference.

The report looks at data from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives on guns used to commit crimes in New York between 2010 and 2015.

Of the 14,588 traced weapons recovered in the Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Capital region and Lower Hudson Valley metropolitan areas, 42 percent, or 6,196, originated in New York, followed by 7 percent each in Massachusetts and Connecticut. Those are all states with relatively tight gun regulations and lower rates of gun ownership.

New York City accounted for almost half of all guns recovered after being used in crimes- 25,799 - and 87 percent of those weapons were bought out of state.

(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)