Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) on Thursday expressed his support for legislation aimed at cracking down on the daily flow of illegal guns on American streets.
The Hadiya Pendleton and Nyasia Pryear-Yard Gun Trafficking & Crime Prevention Act of 2015 would make gun trafficking a federal crime and provide tools to law enforcement to remove illegal guns from criminal networks and street gangs and prosecute those who traffic firearms.
Durbin joined Sens. Mark Kirk (R-IL) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) to support the bill.
“Gun trafficking is one of the key drivers of gun violence in Chicago,” Durbin said. “The Senate came close to passing meaningful anti-trafficking legislation in the last Congress, but we have more work to do. This bipartisan bill will crack down on the illegal trafficking of guns and impose strict federal punishments on those who supply guns to criminals.”
Under current law, there is no criminal statute prohibiting trafficking of firearms. Prosecutors instead rely on laws that prohibit making false statements in connection with the purchase of a firearm.
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