A year long study was made by the Dallas Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms in which recovered guns that had been used in crimes, were traced. The study began in October 1997 and continued through September 1998. Some very important facts came to light.
When the locations of recovered guns were sorted by zip code, it became clear where crooks get guns, most of the suspects lived inside the City of Dallas.
In other large metropolitan areas there is usually an influx of guns from the outside communities into the central areas, but Dallas was unique because very few guns came from outside the city.
When the numbers of gun recovered were applied to the zip code and paired with police substations, high crime areas were clearly delineated.
With that information, local, state and federal law enforcement efforts could be concentrated where they would be most effective.
Weapons used to commit crimes were also traced to states from coast to coast and border to border. However, the majority came from within the state of Texas – a total of 2,964 guns were purchased in Texas alone. But, no state failed to contribute a gun to crime.
