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Battling gun violence

Microstamping would offer a leg up

April 23, 2008

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In the battle against gun violence, every little bit helps. Microstamping, for instance. Last week, the Assembly passed legislation requiring gun makers to stamp codes on the firing pins of semiautomatic handguns delivered to New York dealers starting in 2010. The Senate should sign on, too.

It's no crime-fighting panacea, but microstamping would enable police to identify guns by marks imprinted on the shell casings found at crime scenes. Authorities would be able to trace a gun back to its last legal owner, a lead that could help point the way to the perpetrator.

Even more promising, the stamps would help police trace guns to the shops where they were sold. If the trail repeatedly led to a particular dealer or "straw buyer," it could build a case for pulling that merchant's license or maybe charging the bogus purchaser. That alone would be worth the price of admission, which, incidentally, would be zero for the state. There would be some cost to gun makers - passed along to gun buyers, no doubt - to engrave a code on the tip of firing pins and other surfaces within their handguns.

Could ne'er-do-well gun owners obliterate the stamps? Sure, although bill sponsor Assemb. Michelle Schimel (D-Great Neck) said it wouldn't be easy. And many guns, such as revolvers, don't eject cartridges. Schimel said that's why the bill is limited to semiautomatics, which do eject cartridges and are also criminals' guns of choice. Microstamping would make life tougher for the bad guys - something worth doing.