    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1999, Book I)]
    [March 20, 1999]
    [Pages 425-426]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Memorandum on Deterring and Reducing Gun Crime
    March 20, 1999

    Memorandum for the Secretary of the Treasury, the Attorney General

    Subject: Deterring and Reducing Gun Crime

        Since the start of my Administration, we have developed and
    implemented a number of effective national strategies to reduce crime.
    We have provided funds to over 11,000 communities to hire and deploy
    more than 92,000 local law enforcement officers; we have prevented more
    than a quarter of a million illegal handgun sales through Brady
    background checks; and we have developed a coordinated attack on the
    illegal sources of guns used in crime. Dozens of other smart, tough,
    crime-fighting strategies have been put in place throughout the country
    through the leadership and dedicated efforts of State and local police
    and prosecutors, Mayors, U.S. Attorneys, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,
    and Firearms (ATF), and community leaders.

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        During this period, the Nation's crime rate has dropped by more than
    20 percent, and crime committed with guns has dropped 27 percent. In
    certain communities, where Federal, State, and local law enforcement
    officials have worked with other community leaders, violent crime rates
    have gone down even more dramatically. In Boston, Massachusetts, for
    example, when law enforcement and community leaders worked together to
    reduce violence by youth gangs, they reduced the number of homicides
    among youth by 70 percent in just 2 years. In Minneapolis, Minnesota,
    effective law enforcement and prevention efforts conducted by public-
    private partnerships have reduced homicides by 30 percent and summertime
    homicides by 75 percent. And in Richmond, Virginia, effective and
    coordinated law enforcement, including stepped up enforcement of gun
    crimes through the program known as Project Exile, has reduced the
    homicide rate significantly.
        Still, the number of people killed with firearms remains
    unacceptably high. More than 14,000 people were murdered with guns in
    the United States in 1997. We must redouble our efforts to deter and
    further reduce gun crime--and work to make every neighborhood and
    community free of gun violence.
        I therefore direct you to develop an integrated firearms violence
    reduction strategy that draws on the proven measures and innovative
    approaches being demonstrated by communities throughout the country. We
    know that gun violence issues differ in each community, and no single
    program or strategy will be right for every community. Therefore, in
    developing the strategy, you should consult closely with U.S. Attorneys
    and ATF Special Agents in Charge, as well as other Federal, State, and
    local law enforcement, elected officials, and other leaders. The
    strategy should consider the special needs of local communities and
    strike an appropriate balance between Federal and State law enforcement.
    I ask that the strategy specifically include elements to:

        (1) Increase investigation and prosecution of significant firearms
            violations, including illegal possession, use, and trafficking
            of guns, through innovative programs such as Project Exile and
            Boston's Operation Ceasefire;
        (2) Expand comprehensive ``crime gun'' tracing, analysis, and
            mapping; increase use of ballistics identification technology;
            and coordinate use of crime gun information to identify illegal
            gun markets, gun ``hot spots,'' and illegal gun traffickers;
        (3) Strengthen the coordination of law enforcement and regulatory
            enforcement efforts to ensure compliance with all applicable
            laws by federally licensed gun dealers and prospective gun
            purchasers;
        (4) Implement targeted deterrence of violent offenders through (a)
            improved coordination with probation and parole officials
            supervising such offenders, and (b) swift and certain punishment
            for those found to have violated the conditions of their parole
            or probation; and
        (5) Promote problem-solving analysis and innovative strategies to
            work closely with community members to identify gun criminals,
            remove weapons in the hands of juveniles, search for and seize
            crime guns, and increase the public's knowledge of their
            community's gun-related crime and violence problem.

        Finally, I direct you to make recommendations on how best to
    allocate Federal resources to support the goals of the strategy you
    develop. I further direct you to provide me with your report on this
    integrated firearms violence reduction strategy within 90 days of the
    date of this memorandum.

                                                          William J. Clinton