Interstate crime gun report

Almost half of all guns crossing state lines and then used in crimes in 2009 were sold in just 10 states, including Ohio & Indiana, according to a report released today by Mayors Against Illegal Guns, an association of more than 500 mayors led by New York's Michael Bloomberg and Boston's Thomas Menino, the Associated Press said this morning. The other states comprising that 50-percent were Georgia, Florida, Virginia, Texas, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, California, and Arizona. Of that group, Georgia has ranked first the past four years, with Virginia and Florida consistently rounding out the top three.

Ranked by "number of crime guns exported per 100,000 people", Mississippi led the top three followed by West Virginia and Kentucky.

Virtually all of the guns recovered in crimes were originally sold by licensed gun dealers in the U.S, according to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF),., the report said. "Then entering the illegal market through via theft or robbery, gun dealers who participate in illegal or negligent sales, straw purchasers who buy guns on behalf of criminals, and subsequent sales by unlicensed, private sellers at gun shows and elsewhere, who are not required by federal law to conduct background checks."