NEW DATA: Analysis Reveals Syracuse’s Top Manufacturer of Crime Guns

Glock #1 Crime Gun in Cities Surveyed, Recovered 1.5 Times More Than Any Other Crime Gun; Data Shows Significant Spike in Ghost Guns Recovered at Crime Scenes

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Today, Mayor Ben Walsh of Syracuse, NY and 30 other members of Mayors Against Illegal Guns, a nonpartisan coalition of current and former mayors that is part of Everytown for Gun Safety, released new data about the manufacturers of recovered crime guns in their cities. According to the data provided by the city, Polymer80 is the top manufacturer of crime guns recovered in Syracuse in the data provided. In 2021, across all cities, four gun manufacturers accounted for over half of the recovered crime guns: Glock (21.1%), Smith & Wesson (13.5%), Taurus (13.0%), and Ruger (7.0%). A full list of cities that participated in the report is available below.

“Just this week, Syracuse suffered a horrific gun tragedy.  An 11-year-old girl was killed in a drive-by shooting on her way home from a neighborhood store. These senseless and preventable acts of gun violence that have plagued communities across the United States must stop,” said Mayor Walsh. “It takes each one of us, in every town and city throughout the country, to put an end to the cycle.  One way to do that is to hold gun manufacturers accountable, and I thank Everytown for Gun Safety for taking these next steps.”

“To stop gun crime, we can’t just focus on the criminals — we also need to shine a light on irresponsible gun makers who are turning a blind eye to their role in fueling America’s gun violence crisis,” said Nick Suplina, Senior Vice President of Law & Policy at Everytown for Gun Safety. “I applaud Mayor Walsh for having the guts to stand up to the gun lobby, and hold accountable companies that are putting profit ahead of public safety.”

The report found that according to data provided by the participating cities, on average, more than 1.5 times more Glocks were recovered than the second-leading manufacturer across the collected data. Making the public aware of which companies are responsible for an often disproportionate share of the firearms that end up in crime scenes is a key part in holding the firearms industry accountable. Additionally, the data shows that recoveries of ghost guns nearly tripled from 2020 to 2021 and Polymer80, the largest producer of ghost gun parts and kits, was the fifth-largest producer of crime guns in the cities surveyed in 2021

There are several steps gun manufacturers could take to prevent diversion of their products to the criminal market. These include establishing a dealer code of conduct to ensure that retailers who sell their firearms adhere to basic guidelines, better monitoring their supply chains to detect dealers breaking the law, and stopping all work with dealers who sell guns in situations where someone may be able to avoid a background check, including gun shows and online marketplaces.

Click here to read the new data analysis released today, including breakdowns by city. 

The full list of the cities participating in this data analysis is below, with the bolded cities indicating those joining for the first time. 

• Allentown, PA
• Baltimore, MD
• Buffalo, NY
• Cambridge, MA
• Chattanooga, TN
• Chicago, IL
• Cleveland, OH
• Dayton, OH
• Evanston, IL
• Kansas City, MO
• Little Rock, AR
• Los Angeles, CA
• Louisville, KY
• Madison, WI
• Miami-Dade, FL
• Miramar, FL
• Montgomery, AL
• Mount Vernon, NY
• Nashville, TN
• New York, NY
• Newark, NJ
• Philadelphia, PA
• Pittsburgh, PA
• Rockville, MD
• San Leandro, CA
• San Rafael, CA
• Savannah, GA
• St. Louis, MO
• Syracuse, NY
• Tampa, FL
• Washington, DC