Legislation Has Taken 3K Guns Off Our Streets And Been Used To Prosecute 6 Traffickers In Buffalo Alone
Today, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand stood at the Buffalo Police Department to discuss the anti-gun trafficking statute in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA), which was shaped by Gillibrand’s Hadiya Pendleton and Nyasia Pryear-Yard Gun Trafficking and Crime Prevention Act. As of this month, the anti-gun trafficking statute has gotten more than 3,000 illegal guns off our streets, including 1,000 confirmed within the last 6 months alone. In Buffalo, the statute has been used to prosecute 6 traffickers and seize 30 illegal guns.
“Like so many communities across New York and around the country, Buffalo has been deeply affected by gun violence,” said Senator Gillibrand. “While we still have a lot of work to do, in the two years my anti-gun trafficking statute has been in effect, we have made tremendous progress prosecuting criminals and getting deadly weapons off our streets. I anticipate many more gun seizures, arrests, and convictions as a result of this statute in the years to come, and I will continue to work with my colleagues across the aisle to pass commonsense gun safety legislation.”
Nationwide, the seized weapons included:
- 317 AR-15s and AR-style weapons;
- 478 machine gun conversion devices, which can convert semi-automatic pistols and rifles into fully automatic weapons in under a minute;
- 206 ghost guns, homemade firearms that are completely untraceable – and a favorite of criminals.
- The statute has also been used to charge 423 defendants in 33 states, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico, and to secure at least 119 convictions nationwide.
In Buffalo, Gillibrand’s statute has been used to bring four cases against six defendants:
- Authorities arrested and charged a 28 year old man for attempting to smuggle weapons into Canada via Buffalo. Authorities seized 19 firearms, including 1 AR-style weapon.
- A judge sentenced a Pennsylvania man to 36 months in prison for illegally selling guns over Facebook Messenger in the Jamestown, NY, area. Authorities seized 3 weapons.
- A father and son from Niagara Falls were arrested and charged with gun trafficking after they allegedly sold several firearms to a law enforcement source. The ATF Buffalo Field Office and the Niagara County Sheriff’s Office worked together to seize 5 guns from the defendants, including a ghost gun and two machine gun conversion devices.
- Two individuals were charged with firearms trafficking conspiracy after allegedly engaging in a scheme to illegally purchase guns in Pennsylvania and bring them to Buffalo to sell via Facebook. Authorities seized 3 guns during their investigation – 1 via an undercover purchase and 2 during the arrest of one of the defendants.
Senator Gillibrand’s Hadiya Pendleton and Nyasia Pryear-Yard Gun Trafficking and Crime Prevention Act formed the centerpiece of BSCA’s anti-gun trafficking provision. Gillibrand first introduced the bill in 2009 after meeting with the family of Nyasia Pryear-Yard, who tragically lost her life at 17 years old when she was shot by a perpetrator using an illegally trafficked gun. Gillibrand worked with Nyasia’s mother, Jennifer Pryear, to pass the bill into law, and they attended the bill signing together in 2022.
Today in Buffalo, Gillibrand was joined by Buffalo Common Council President Chris Scanlon, Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia, and WNY Coordinator of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence Paul McQuillen.
“The Bipartisan Safer Community Act provides law enforcement with enhanced tools necessary to prevent gun violence,” said Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia. “The Buffalo Police Department is working very hard to remove guns that are illegally possessed from our streets. Enhanced background checks along with Extreme Risk Protection Orders are saving lives by giving law enforcement the tools to investigate threats of mass harm and racially motivated extremist hate crimes. While we are not looking to infringe on a person’s right to own a gun, we need to make sure we do all that is necessary to keep guns out of the hands of those that exhibit behaviors where they may cause harm.“
“The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, signed into law in the wake of the 5/14 shooting in Buffalo, is working,” said Congressman Kennedy. “It expands background checks, fights illegal firearm trafficking, and supports mental health and intervention programs that reduce gun violence. As a result, 3,000 illegal guns are off the street nationwide. Now, Congress must build on this progress to make our communities safer.”
“On behalf of WNYers Against Gun Violence, the Buffalo community, and communities all across WNY, we thank Sen. Gillibrand for her continuing and unwavering pursuit of gun safety and gun safety legislation,” said Western New Yorkers Against Gun Violence Executive Director Paul McQuillen. “As a relentless leader on this issue, Sen. Gillibrand clearly sets the tone and agenda for gun safety in Congress, in our country, and in our communities. We are appreciative of the work Sen. Gillibrand has accomplished thus far and look forward to the Senator’s leadership as we continue to press the fight for communities free from gun violence.”