Oct. 4 Neal Knox Update — Saturday’s New York Times contained details of last Monday’s meeting between key gunmakers and most of the cities suing them for providing the less than one-half of one
percent of their guns used in crimes.

According to the Times, the attendance list was much broader than previously reported. It included Ed Shultz, chief executive of Smith & Wesson, and officials from Sturm, Ruger & Company,
Colt’s Manufacturing, O. F. Mossberg & Sons, Taurus, Glock and Beretta.

Although discussions were preliminary, participants on the cities’ side of the table were optimistic because Robert Delfay, president of National Shooting Sports Foundation, “was behind a
carefully developed framework that provided common ground for both sides in the talks.”

The municipalities’ demands, which were described as a “wish list” were presented by the City Attorney of Los Angeles. The “most important and far-reaching … was that the gun companies
establish tighter contractual control over their chain of distribution to wholesalers and then retailers, and so curb the supply of handguns to criminals and juveniles through corrupt dealers. Any dealer who was found by Federal tracing to be
providing a sizable number of guns used in crimes would lose his supply of products from the manufacturer.”

Other demands, the Times reported, were that the industry prohibit its dealers from selling handguns at gun shows or on the Internet, stop advertisements claiming that handguns increase safety in homes, and support legislation limiting
customers to one handgun purchase a month.

Further, the cities wanted the companies to require external locks on all guns and, by 2004, to produce guns that only its owner could fire.

The industry reportedly responded that the cities should lobby for an increased budget for BATF to expand its oversight.

Notably missing from the meeting were makers of low-cost handguns and lawyers for New Orleans, Newark, Chicago, Detroit and several other cities.