Millions of dollars later, Maryland has officially decided that its 15-year effort to store and catalog the "fingerprints" of thousands of handguns was a failure.
Since 2000, the state required that gun manufacturers fire every handgun to be sold here and send the spent bullet casing to authorities. The idea was to build a database of "ballistic fingerprints" to help solve future crimes.
But the system — plagued by technological problems — never solved a single case. Now the hundreds of thousands of accumulated casings could be sold for scrap.
"Obviously, I'm disappointed," said former Gov. Parris N. Glendening, a Democrat whose administration pushed for the database to fulfill a campaign promise. "It's a little unfortunate, in that logic and common sense suggest that it would be a good crime-fighting tool."
Wow--some common sense and honesty, in Maryland, of all places.
ReplyDeleteI wonder what the going rate per pound of recyclable brass is these days. At least in this case of a failed government program, they might get a little bit of money to offset the waste.
ReplyDelete"There have been 26 instances in the past 15 years in which Maryland's cache of spent casings helped investigators in some fashion, but in each case investigators already knew the gun for which they were looking, state police said."
Interesting that the gun control lobby likes to suggest that firearms aren't used enough defensively to justify carrying a firearm for self defense, yet for quite a long time no one seemed to bat an eye at the this ineffective and wasteful program.
Told you it wouldn't work.
ReplyDelete"It's a little unfortunate, in that logic and common sense suggest that it would be a good crime-fighting tool."
That's the "logic and common sense" of gun control for you. They just wished it could work with using any technical know-how of guns. Might as well interrogate the gun under some hot lights next time.
Can we put this one to bed now? Just like the "Glocks can go through metal detectors" screed, it usually takes a decade or so of being wrong before you guys finally drop it quietly.
No. It's a good idea that was badly implemented. Odd that you have no doubts about the efficacy of Google data collection or that of the NSA, but when it comes to guns you become all skeptical.
Delete" It's a good idea that was badly implemented. Odd that you have no doubts about the efficacy of Google data collection or that of the NSA"
DeleteGoogle data collection had the requirement to make a profit. I bet they had to show results in something less than the fifteen years that Maryland took. In the case of Maryland's program, even their State Police recommended dumping it. And New York dropping their non-working program three years ago.
A good idea that can't be properly implemented after fifteen years of trying isn't a good idea and deserves to be dumped. This is a wonderful example of the old saying, throwing good money after bad.
Really? You're still not going to let this one go? Even after it's fiercest advocates have backed off, you're still calling it a "good idea". You know Mike, ideas don't always work, especially when it's an idea thought up by people completely ignorant about guns. But please, tell us what made it "badly implemented". Tell us your ideas on how it would actually work.
DeleteJust like the "Glocks can go through metal detectors" screed, it usually takes a decade or so of being wrong before you guys finally drop it quietly.
DeleteIn Mikeb's case, TS, I'm afraid that first decade of being wildly, hilariously wrong is barely enough to get him warmed up.