A RESOLUTION
To call on the United States Department of Justice to strengthen state regulations of gun dealers.
WHEREAS, the City of Chicago has been repeatedly ranked top three in the nation for violent crime, with disproportionately high gun-related deaths per citizen and shootings on the rise;
WHEREAS, in 2015, there have been 1,558 shooting victims in the City of Chicago, following the upward trajectory of about 2,500 shootings in the year 2014 alone;
WHEREAS, in 2014, the Chicago Police Department reported that 60 percent of guns recovered in crimes in Chicago were first sold in other states that have weaker guns laws such as Indiana, Mississippi, and Wisconsin;
WHEREAS, a disproportionate amount of these firearms are illegally brought from states with less stringent gun laws and into low-income and minority neighborhoods in the Cily of Chicago;
WHEREAS, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 states that: "No person in the United States shall, on the ground of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance";
WHEREAS, the Chicago Police Department in addition to most municipal police departments nationwide constitutes a 'program' as defined as "a department, agency, special purpose district, or other instrumentality ofa State or of a local government";
WHEREAS, most police departments like that of the City of Chicago receive federal funding or assistance for law enforcement as a program by way of grant, loan, or contract other than a contract of insurance or guaranty;
WHEREAS, the police departments of other municipalities are charged with the licensing of gun dealers;
WHEREAS, states and local governments are charged with the regulation of firearms and holding gun dealers accountable through slate monitoring, trainings, and requirements to sell firearms;
WHEREAS, careless methods of state law enforcement - a program funded in part by the federal government - regarding the selling and purchasing of firearms have the effect of discriminating on the basis of race;
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that we, the Mayor and Members ofthe City Council ofthe City of Chicago, assembled this twenty-ninth day of July 2015, do hereby call on the United States Department of Justice to implement legislation that requires states to increase regulation and accountability of gun dealers through comprehensive improvements in standards for lax firearm dealers nationwide.