New Report Reveals How New Mexico Gun Dealers Are Driving the State’s Crime Gun Crisis; Lawmakers Propose Policy Solutions

New Analysis Finds the Vast Majority of Crime Guns Recovered in New Mexico Come From Licensed Dealers Inside the State

Report Reveals Alarming Signs of Trafficking, Weak Oversight, and a Small Number of Dealers Flooding Communities With Guns Later Used in Violence

SANTA FE — Everytown for Gun Safety today released a new white paper revealing that New Mexico’s gun violence crisis is being driven by an in-state supply chain of crime guns flowing from licensed gun dealers into the hands of traffickers, kids, and violent offenders. The analysis finds that the overwhelming share of recovered and traced crime guns in the state were originally purchased at New Mexico gun stores, many just months before being used in crimes.

In 2023 alone, law enforcement recovered and traced 4,847 crime guns across New Mexico. 78 percent were originally sold by federally licensed dealers, and 77 percent were sold by dealers operating within New Mexico. The data also show that nearly half of all crime guns recovered in the state were purchased less than three years before their recovery, a well-established indicator of trafficking.

“After years in ATF analyzing traced crime guns and understanding trafficking networks, I can tell you this: guns don’t magically appear in the criminal market,” said Marianna Mitchem,  Senior Firearms Industry Advisor at Everytown for Gun Safety and Former Associate Assistant Director of Field Operations at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives. “They flow there from licensed gun dealers who either can’t or won’t stop obvious trafficking patterns. In New Mexico, that pipeline is wide open — and traffickers know it. Without strong state laws that hold dealers accountable and shut down repeat sources of crime guns, this supply chain will continue to arm the people who are most intent on doing harm.”

“Communities across New Mexico are sadly too familiar with the devastation caused by illegal firearms flooding our backyards, finding their way into the hands of our kids, causing tragedies that should never happen,” said New Mexico Representative Andrea Romero, co-sponsor of proposed legislation to address in-state trafficking. “We do not have to accept this as our reality. This session, we have the opportunity to stop the flow by holding gun dealers accountable, cracking down on trafficking, and banning the assault-style weapons that make these shootings so deadly. New Mexicans deserve a system that protects families, not one that arms the people intent on doing harm.”

“New Mexico shouldn’t have to accept a system where guns can move so easily from licensed dealers to tragedies,” said Regina Griego, a volunteer with the New Mexico chapter of Moms Demand Action. “The consequences are real: these guns are showing up in shootings, in the hands of kids, and in tragedies that devastate families and entire communities. A small number of dealers are supplying an outsized share of the guns recovered in crimes, and traffickers are exploiting the weak points in our laws to keep that pipeline alive. This is a solvable problem. Lawmakers can step in, strengthen oversight, and finally cut off the flow of crime guns at the source.”

Key findings from the report include:

• New Mexico’s crime gun problem is overwhelmingly linked to in-state gun dealers.
  • New Mexico federal firearms licensees (FFLs) supply 77 percent of all crime guns recovered in the state, making New Mexico its own largest source of crime guns. 
  • Texas, the next largest source, accounts for just 7 percent.
• Thousands of crime guns show unmistakable signs of trafficking.
  • 47 percent of crime guns were purchased within three years of being used in a crime, a red flag for illegal trafficking.
  • 89 percent of crime guns recovered between 2017 and 2021 were found in the possession of someone other than the original purchaser.
  • Based on trafficking indicators, more than 1,500 guns recovered in 2023 were likely funneled into the criminal market via traffickers and straw purchasers.
• A small number of dealers are disproportionately responsible.
• Although New Mexico has roughly 670 active FFLs, only about 115 are actively selling guns, creating a small, high-volume group of dealers that can be effectively overseen with targeted regulation.

• Crime guns stay close to home.
  • More than 56 percent of New Mexico crime guns are recovered within 10 miles of the dealer that sold them. Nearly half of all New Mexico crime guns were recovered in Albuquerque, where over a hundred gun dealers operate.
• Trafficked guns are being used in shootings across the state.
  • National ATF data shows trafficked firearms are significantly more likely to be used in shootings. According to the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN), traced pistols used in shootings in New Mexico were found to have been purchased just 1.5 years prior to the shooting. Law enforcement generally considers a Time-to-crime (TTC) of less than three years to be indicative of firearm trafficking.

State-Level Action Can Stop the Flow:

Federal oversight has weakened in recent years, while gun homicides in New Mexico have risen 166 percent from 2014 to 2023 and the state continues to suffer one of the highest gun death rates in the nation. The report, created by the Everytown Support Fund, reinforces the need for New Mexico legislators to fill the vacuum. Measures New Mexico lawmakers can take s this session, including:

1. Banning the sale of military-style assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. These weapons — repeatedly used in New Mexico tragedies, including Farmington, Las Cruces, and Roswell — cause the most devastation when they get into the wrong hands.s
2. Strengthening oversight and accountability for gun dealers. The report calls for requiring security, inventory controls, employee background checks, inspections, and penalties for the dealers most commonly linked to crime guns.
3. Cracking down on trafficking and straw purchasing. This includes requiring dealers to report crime-gun trace information to the state, enforcing straw purchasing laws, and shutting down dealers who repeatedly sell guns later used in crimes.