PSP Webinar: Crime Guns 101

The initial recovery and identification of a crime gun is one of the most critical steps in any investigation. This step is even more critical for agencies whose communities are experiencing high incidences of violent gun crime, are expanding their utilization of crime gun intelligence (National Integrated Ballistic Information Network [NIBIN] and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ [ATF] eTrace), or are participating in a Crime Gun Intelligence Center (CGIC). These firearms provide valuable investigative leads and are subsequently scrutinized during all aspects of the investigation that follows the recovery. Despite the importance of this initial step, few officers receive training on the identification of firearms and, as a result, firearms are frequently misidentified, leading to missed opportunities for lead development, case connection, and successful prosecution. This webinar provided an overview of the NIBIN process and CGIC concept, history and relevance of ATF’s eTrace, how to properly identify and recover crime guns, and lessons learned and successes from unique cases.

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