Opposition to Conceal Carry Reciprocity Legislation

Submitted by: Firearms Committee

FC.007.t2017

WHEREAS, the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act (LEOSA) of 2004 enables retired law enforcement officers to carry a concealed weapon throughout the United States; and

WHEREAS, LEOSA requires retired police officers to receive annual training and qualifications; and

WHEREAS, bills introduced in Congress could give concealed carry authority to untrained and unqualified people this same authority; and

WHEREAS, allowing untrained persons who have no familiarity with a handgun or the mechanical and legal complexities involved with using a handgun and allowing them to carry one in public is irresponsible; and

WHEREAS, it is a concern that individual states that have mandated training requirements for carrying a concealed weapon be forced to accept the concealed carry permits of persons from states that have no requirements whatsoever; and

WHEREAS, such an action puts the general public, the person carrying a firearm, and our law enforcement officers required to respond to the consequences at risk; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, that the responsibility of carrying a concealed weapon should include a minimum of familiarization and training with the weapon carried, basic instruction on the fundamentals of carrying a concealed weapon, and understanding of when the use of a concealed weapon is legal and/or advisable; and be it

FURTHER RESOLVED that the International Association of Chiefs of Police opposes Congressional bills similar to the 115^th Congress' HR. 38 that provide concealed carry permit holders with immunity from arrest or detention for violation of any law or any rule or regulation of a state or any political subdivision thereof related to the possession, transportation, or carrying of firearms.

Supporting the Codification of State and Federal Legislative Proposals Modeled on the Core Principle of the Kelsey Smith Act

Submitted by: Police Investigative Operations Committee

PIOC.014.t2017

WHEREAS, on June 2, 2007, Kelsey Smith was abducted while shopping at an Overland Park, Kansas department store, and security camera imagery of the parking lot left little doubt that immediate action was urgently required; and

WHEREAS, law enforcement quickly determined that the location of her mobile telephone would be of great value to the investigation, and sought those records from the service provider; and

WHEREAS, current federal law leaves the determination of exigency permitting voluntary disclosure of communications records in the hands of the service provider rather than law enforcement, and is permissive rather than mandatory, and that as a result, for four days, law enforcement was denied access to the relevant records by the service provider while protracted discussions took place between the parties over issues of consent, voluntary compliance, and the validity of law enforcement's declaration of an emergency; and

WHEREAS, within 45 minutes of the eventual disclosure of the location information to law enforcement, Kelsey was found deceased; and

WHEREAS, in 2016, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) assisted law enforcement and families with more than 20,500 cases of missing children; and

WHEREAS, approximately 4,000 13-24 year olds are murdered every year in the United States1 ; and from 2003 to 2014 there have been approximately 48,000 13-24 year olds murdered in the United States2 ; and in the first half of 2017, using Verizon Wireless as an example, 27,478 requests for information from law enforcement in emergency matters involving the danger of death or serious physical injury were reported3 ; and

WHEREAS, In the wake of her death, Smith's parents started the Kelsey Smith Foundation to advocate for State and Federal legislation to "provide law enforcement with a way to quickly ascertain the location of a wireless telecommunications device if a person has been determined, by law enforcement, to be at risk of death or serious physical harm due to being kidnapped and/or missing."; and

WHEREAS, in response to the outcome of the Kelsey Smith case, The Kansas Legislature passed the Kelsey Smith Act in 2009 which mandates in part that: "Upon request of a law enforcement agency, a wireless telecommunications carrier shall provide call location information concerning the telecommunications device of the user to the requesting law enforcement agency in order to respond to a call for emergency services or in an emergency situation that involves the risk of death or serious physical harm."4 ; and

WHEREAS, Kansas passed the Kelsey Smith Act in 2009, and similar legislation has been passed in 21 states; and

WHEREAS, the present discretion for permissive disclosure by a service provider rather than a mandatory disclosure based on a law enforcement declaration of emergency has been responsible for responses that are unwisely delayed or unnecessarily withheld; and

WHEREAS, the same permissive disclosure at the service provider's discretion rather than a mandatory disclosure based on a law enforcement declaration of emergency works to negatively impact public safety and welfare by limiting law enforcement's ability to respond to, prevent and bring to justice those responsible for the murder or serious physical injury of abducted or missing and vulnerable minor or adult victims; and

WHEREAS, In the absence of the core principal of the Kelsey Smith Act, a permissive disclosure at the service provider's discretion rather than a mandatory disclosure based on a law enforcement declaration of emergency negatively impacts the public safety and welfare by restricting law enforcement's ability to quickly access critical information on the cellphones of victims to save lives; now, therefore be it

RESOLVED, that this expedited response should be available in situations involving the disappearance of an individual, the report of a runaway child or report of a missing person for which no criminal charge may be readily apparent but where law enforcement in its professional judgment believes urgency exists; and

RESOLVED, that the IACP strongly supports the ongoing legislative efforts at both the State and Federal levels to codify legislative proposals adopting the core principal of the Kelsey Smith Act, provided that any legislation drafted should conform without compromise to the core principal of the Kelsey Smith act, without the introduction of additional restrictions; and

RESOLVED, that IACP supports the ongoing Congressional effort expended to craft and perfect H.R. 4889 - The Kelsey Smith Act - 114th Congress (2015-2016) and S.2770 - The Kelsey Smith Act - 114th Congress (2015-2016) which are currently languishing in the 115th Congress, consistent with the above statement; and

FURTHER RESOLVED, that the IACP strongly supports efforts by its membership and its Committees to raise awareness on how this issue impacts day-to-day police work and obstructs public safety from obtaining the information necessary to save lives and prevent future deaths

1 Bureau of Justice Statistics

2 FBI UCR Reports

3 http://www.verizon.com/about/portal/transparency-report/us-report/

4 http://kslegislature.org/li_2012/m/statute/022_000_0000_chapter/022_046_0000_article/022_046_0015_section/022_04 6_0015_k.pdf

Support to Prohibit the Possession or Transfer of Certain Firearm Accessories

Submitted by: Firearms Committee and IACP Board of Directors

FC.025.t2017

WHEREAS, the National Firearms Act of 1934 describes an automatic weapon as any weapon which shoots, is designed to shoot, or can be readily restored to shoot automatically more than one shot without manual reloading, by a single function of the trigger and explicitly includes any part designed and intended solely and exclusively, or combination of parts designed and intended for use in converting a weapon into a machinegun; and

WHEREAS, the National Firearms Act of 1934 (NFA) imposed a $200 tax and mandatory registration through the Federal NFA Registry on all machine guns and short- barrel firearms; and

WHEREAS, a trigger crank, bump-fire device, and similar attachments or accessories are designed or can function to increase the rate of fire of a semi-automatic firearm to that of an automatic weapon; now, therefore be it

RESOLVED, that the International Association of Chiefs of Police supports legislation that prohibits the possession, import, manufacture, transfer and sale of trigger cranks, bump-fire devices, and similar attachments or and accessories designed to increase or modify semi-automatic firearms to automatic weapons; and be it

FURTHER RESOLVED, that the International Association of Chiefs of Police supports requiring individuals currently in possession of a trigger cranks, bump-fire device, or and similar attachments or and accessories designed to increase or modify semi-automatic firearms to automatic weapons to surrender or register such devices with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) under the National Firearms Act of 1934; and be it

FURTHER RESOLVED, that the IACP supports providing the ATF with the resources needed to enforce a mandatory surrender or registration with respect to bump fire devices and other NFA weapons, including resources necessary to modernize and upgrade its equipment.

Opposition to Remove Silencers (Suppressors) from the National Firearms Act of 1934

Submitted by: Firearms Committee

FC.026.t2017

WHEREAS, since 1934, silencers (suppressors) have been registered under the National Firearms Act. The National Firearms Act describes silencers (suppressors) as devices for silencing, muffling, or diminishing the report of a portable firearms, including any combination of parts, designed or redesigned, and intended for the use in assembling or fabricating a firearm silencers or firearm muffler, any part intended for use in such assembly or fabrication; and

WHEREAS, to acquire a silencer(suppressors), the National Firearms Act requires an individual to pay a $200 tax, pass a background check, register the silencer and submit fingerprints and a photograph to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and

WHEREAS, the National Firearms Act has effectively regulated silencers (suppressors) for over 80 years and they are rarely trafficked or used in crimes. In rare incidents where criminals have used silencers (suppressors) to alter or diminish the sound of gunfire, the results have been deadly; and

WHEREAS, the proliferation of silencers (suppressors) undermines the ability of gunshot detection technology, which is widely used in American cities, to alert law enforcement and first responders to shootings in the community; and

WHEREAS, silencers (suppressors) prevent police officers from quickly and effectively responding to active shooters, as silencers (suppressors) make it harder to recognize the sound of gunfire and mask muzzle flash, making it more difficult to locate and engage armed offenders; and

WHEREAS, firearms-related deaths were the number one cause of death for law enforcement in 2016 and law enforcement officers are particularly vulnerable to ambush-style killings, silencers (suppressors) are a particular threat to the security of our nation's law enforcement; and

WHEREAS, if silencers (suppressors) were deregulated from the National Firearms Act, individuals prohibited under federal law from owning silencers (suppressors) could easily acquire them without a background check and harm law enforcement and our communities; now, therefore be it

RESOLVED, that the International Association of Chiefs of Police opposes any efforts to remove silencers (suppressors) from the purview of the National Firearms Act, recognizing how this action would undermine the security of law enforcement and the safety of the public.