Washington, D.C., July 6, 2023 - Today, Brady released an additional 617 Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) inspection reports never seen by the public, adding them to its largest searchable database of such reports at GunStoreTransparency.org.
Inspection reports shine an important light on gun sellers’ practices, however the gun industry has long worked to keep this information from the public. Brady’s site now hosts 3,425 such reports, which Brady received after taking the ATF to court to fulfill their obligations under the Freedom of Information Act.
Brady General Counsel and Director of Programs Josh Scharff said:
“This new release will help inform the public about firearms, unsafe gun industry business practices that lead to trafficking, and federal enforcement of gun laws. This information belongs to the people, and the fact that the gun lobby has worked for decades to keep such data from the public has stopped meaningful efforts to study firearms trafficking and reform problematic business practices that lead to the types of gun violence we hear about everyday. These inspection reports and the data they contain are an important resource to develop evidence-based solutions for properly enforcing our laws and taking a supply-side approach to addressing our nation’s gun violence crisis.”
About Brady’s Gun Store Transparency Project:
Brady has been defending victims of gun violence in court and pushing for comprehensive and effective federal, state, and local oversight of the gun industry for decades. Beginning in 2017, Brady filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to obtain federal inspection reports where ATF took administrative action against gun stores cited for violating the law. Ultimately when the records were not produced by ATF, Brady took action in court to force production and has received over 80,000 pages to date of these reports. This database includes and builds upon the documents used in investigations conducted by USA Today and The Trace in 2021, The New York Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, and others. This database is the most comprehensive and detailed collection of ATF inspection reports ever released publicly, and will continue to grow as Brady obtains new reports from ATF.
About Brady’s Combating Crime Guns Initiative:
Since 90% of guns used in crime come from just 5% of dealers, a comprehensive approach to ending gun violence must address the supply-side — the gun industry and dealers who are contributing to and profiting from gun violence. Brady’s Combating Crime Guns Initiative works to shift the burden of gun violence from the shooters to the suppliers of crime guns, including irresponsible gun industry actors who prioritize profit over public safety.
Brady has one powerful mission — to unite all Americans against gun violence. We work across Congress, the courts, and our communities with over 90 grassroots chapters, bringing together young and old, red and blue, and every shade of color to find common ground in common sense. In the spirit of our namesakes Jim and Sarah Brady, we have fought for over 45 years to take action, not sides, and we will not stop until this epidemic ends. It’s in our hands.
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