The 90% Myth – Only 17% of Guns in Mexico Come from US
ChrisB on Apr 03 2009 | Filed under: Chris' Page, Domestic Politics, Firearms
You’ve probably heard all over the media and from the politicos about the out of control crime in Mexico. And of course 90% of the guns used come from the US so therefore we need to take away your guns. Leaving aside the dubious logic of citizens having to give up their rights because the Government cannot secure our border there’s one thing about that statistic everyone needs to know, it’s not true.
The fact is, only 17 percent of guns found at Mexican crime scenes have been traced to the U.S.
What’s true, an ATF spokeswoman told FOXNews.com, in a clarification of the statistic used by her own agency’s assistant director, “is that over 90 percent of the traced firearms originate from the U.S.”
But a large percentage of the guns recovered in Mexico do not get sent back to the U.S. for tracing, because it is obvious from their markings that they do not come from the U.S.
“Not every weapon seized in Mexico has a serial number on it that would make it traceable, and the U.S. effort to trace weapons really only extends to weapons that have been in the U.S. market,” Matt Allen, special agent of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), told FOX News.
So basically what it’s saying is that 90% of US weapons come from the US. Our very own gun control and government regulation is creating this misperception because the government requires guns to be traceable.
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