Americans for Responsible Solutions Applauds the Obama Administration’s Latest Steps to Protect Law Enforcement, Help Keep Guns Out of the Wrong Hands & Reduce Gun Tragedies

WASHINGTON, DC – Americans for Responsible Solutions (ARS), the gun violence prevention organization founded by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and retired NASA astronaut Captain Mark Kelly, and its partner organization the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, today applauded President Obama following the administration’s release of new baseline specifications for law enforcement service pistols, which includes additional technology to enhance the security of firearms.

“We applaud President Obama for leading the fight to help protect law enforcement, keep guns out of the wrong hands, and save lives,” saidDavid Chipman, a 25-year law enforcement veteran and Senior Policy Advisor at Americans for Responsible Solutions. “Advancements in firearms safety technology help provide a better product and a safer user experience. Unlike other consumer products, federal law does not set any design safety standards for domestic firearms. The Washington gun lobby has fought to protect this dangerous status quo by prohibiting the Consumer Product Safety Commission from facilitating the development and implementation of new gun safety technology. We hope these guidelines will help move smart gun technology forward for both law enforcement and the public at large.”

Americans for Responsible Solutions and the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence submitted recommendations to the Office of Science Technology and the National Institute of Justice on the new baseline specifications, including a suggestion for improving the reliability standards used to test the pistols for malfunctions, which was adopted in the final rule.

The decision to release new baseline specifications for law enforcement service pistols was part of the administration’s actions to reduce gun violence in January 2016. Congresswoman Giffords, Captain Kelly, and Americans for Responsible Solutions met several times with President Obama and administration officials in 2014 and 2015 to push for many of these commonsense policies. Together with the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, Americans for Responsible Solutions is leading the way in a 50-state approach to help enact stronger gun laws that keep guns out of the wrong hands and save lives.