Georgia guns used in crimes - WALB.com, Albany News, Weather, Sports

Georgia guns used in crimes

Posted: Updated:
By Ashton Pellom - bio | email
Steven Drew Steven Drew

  • More WALB News10 HeadlinesMore News Headlines

  • Friday, May 24 2013 9:30 AM EDT2013-05-24 13:30:13 GMT
    Information from GA Pundit- Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield soldiers began Memorial Day observances Thursday. Several Gold Star Families - who like the Bookers have lost a family member to conflict
    Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield soldiers began Memorial Day observances Thursday. In 2013, Georgia lost 26 armed services members who gave their lives for us and their names were read in the State Capitol as part of our observance of Memorial Day.

  • Friday, May 24 2013 9:01 AM EDT2013-05-24 13:01:21 GMT
    LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. (AP) - Legal woes are piling up for the leader of Georgia's Democratic Party. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports (http://bit.ly/199UTSo) that a lawsuit filed in Gwinnett County
    A lawsuit filed in Gwinnett County this week accuses Mike Berlon of failing to distribute nearly $1 million from a trust he created for a friend and his son.

  • Thursday, May 23 2013 11:45 PM EDT2013-05-24 03:45:38 GMT
    A Cordele man is out of jail tonight, accused of stealing thousands of dollars worth of jewelry from his former employer. Crisp County Investigators say 25-year-old James Aultman stole more than $10,000
    A Cordele man is out of jail tonight, accused of stealing thousands of dollars worth of jewelry from his former employer.
    •   
LEE COUNTY, GA (WALB) -

More guns used in crimes around the country are being linked back to Georgia.

A new analysis by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives ranks Georgia fifth in the nation as the purchase point for guns used in crimes.

Many of those guns, bought legally here, were sold illegally in places where it's harder to get guns.

Monday in Atlanta, a man was sentenced to 17 years in federal prison for transporting guns from Georgia to sell in New York.

One Lee County gun dealer says the answer is something you learn in economics 101.

"It's a real simple supply and demand problem," said Steven Drew of Georgia Loan and Gun.

Drew says when a city or state creates laws that make it harder to buy a gun legally, the demand will still be met, even illegally.

"If there's a supply and demand problem, which has been artificially created by the law enforcement or government entities, somebody will figure out a way to meet that supply problem," said Drew.

With guns selling for more than double on the black market than what the buyer purchases legally here, this can be a very lucrative business for criminals.

"A medium priced 9mm pistol that was purchased legally here that might sell in the $500 to $600 range might be in the $1200 to $1500 range," said Drew.

Drew credits the relative ease, lax and liberal gun laws we have in Georgia that provide a way for who he calls "straw buyers". Straw buyers, who have a clean background, buy the guns for criminals.

Straw buyers can serve serious time in prison.

"They know that the gun is going to somebody who is not legally capable of buying a gun, that's a federal crime with 15 to 20 years in prison," said Drew.

Drew says it's tough to crack down on straw buyers and with Interstate 75 providing an expressway to other states, he say creating laws to ban guns won't eliminate the problem, it will just spread it around.

Georgia ranks fifth in the number of firearms recovered after being used in crimes.

More than 11,300 guns bought here were used by criminals last year.

The top four states all have much larger populations than Georgia. They are California, Florida, Texas and Illinois.

 

Copyright 2012 WALB.  All rights reserved.