Firearms Trace Data: New Jersey - 2020

Data Source: Firearms Tracing System

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020

 

Contents

  1. ATF Firearms Trace Data Disclaimer
  2. Table: Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced in New Jersey in Calendar Year 2020
  3. Table: Firearm Types with a New Jersey Recovery
  4. Table: Top Calibers Reported on Firearm Traces with a New Jersey Recovery
  5. Table: Top Categories Reported on Firearm Traces with a New Jersey Recovery
  6. Table: Top 15 Source States for Firearms with a New Jersey Recovery
  7. Table: Time-To-Crime Rates for Firearms with a New Jersey Recovery
  8. Table: Age of Possessors for Firearms with a New Jersey Recovery
  9. Table: Top Recovery Cities for Firearms with a New Jersey Recovery
  10. Analytical Criteria Used to Compile the Enclosed Statistics

 

ATF Firearms Trace Data Disclaimer

Firearm traces are designed to assist law enforcement authorities in conducting investigations by tracking the sale and possession of specific firearms. Law enforcement agencies may request firearms traces for any reason, and those reasons are not necessarily reported to the federal government. Not all firearms used in crime are traced and not all firearms traced are used in crime.

Firearms selected for tracing are not chosen for purposes of determining which types, makes or models of firearms are used for illicit purposes. The firearms selected do not constitute a random sample and should not be considered representative of the larger universe of all firearms used by criminals, or any subset of that universe. Firearms are normally traced to the first retail seller, and sources reported for firearms traced do not necessarily represent the sources or methods by which firearms in general are acquired for use in crime.

 

Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced in New Jersey in Calendar Year 2020

4,225

 

Firearm Types with a New Jersey Recovery

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
Pistols 2,804
Revolvers 634
Rifles 477
Shotguns 265
Derringers 17
Unknown Types 17
Receivers/Frames 7
Machineguns 3
Any Other Weapon 1

 

Top Calibers Reported on Firearm Traces with a New Jersey Recovery

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
9mm 1,370
.40 Cal 436
.22 Cal 422
.380 Cal 349
.45 Cal 304
.38 Cal 280
12GA 198
.32 Cal 127
.357 Cal 114
.25 Cal 97

NOTE: There were 452 additional traces that were associated with other calibers. There were 76 traces with an unknown caliber.

 

Top Categories Reported on Firearm Traces with a New Jersey Recovery

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
Possession of Weapon 2,066
Found Firearm 1,269
Firearm Under Investigation 126
Weapon Offense 125
Dangerous Drugs 104
Aggravated Assault 91
Simple Assault 56
Homicide 53
Family Offense 48
Health - Safety 35

NOTE: There were 252 additional traces that were associated with other categories.

 

Top 15 Source States for Firearms with a New Jersey Recovery

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
New Jersey 487
Pennsylvania 431
Georgia 311
Virginia 293
North Carolina 250
South Carolina 226
Florida 142
Ohio 78
Texas 60
West Virginia 53
Tennessee 50
Alabama 46
Delaware 44
Indiana 31
Kentucky 28

NOTE: An additional 32 states accounted for 268 other traces. The source state was identified in 2,798 total traces.

 

Time-To-Crime Rates for Firearms with a New Jersey Recovery

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
Under 3 Months 198
3 Months to Under 7 Months 195
7 Months to Under 1 Year 132
1 Year to Under 2 Years 227
2 Years to Under 3 Years 199
3 Years and Over 1,815

1/1/2020-12/31/2020 New Jersey Average Time-to-Crime: 10.25 Years

1/1/2020-12/31/2020 National Average Time-to-Crime: 7.01 Years

 

Age of Possessors for Firearms with a New Jersey Recovery

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
17 and Under 160
18 to 21 458
22 to 24 294
25 to 30 643
31 to 40 577
41 to 50 293
Over 50 415

1/1/2020-12/31/2020 New Jersey Average Age of Possessor: 34 Years

1/1/2020-12/31/2020 National Average Age of Possessor: 34 Years

 

Top Recovery Cities for Firearms with a New Jersey Recovery

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
Newark 463
Trenton 289
Camden 280
Paterson 209
Jersey City 187
Elizabeth 116
Atlantic City 102
Wayne 75
East Orange 61
Hamilton 57
Irvington 57

NOTE: There were 371 additional municipalities that accounted for 2,315 other traces. The recovery city could not be determined for 14 traces.

 

Analytical Criteria Used to Compile the Enclosed Statistics

Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced

  • Includes traces with a recovery state of New Jersey. Traces in which the recovery state was not provided were included when the requesting agency state was equal to New Jersey.
  • Includes Firearms Recovered and Traced between 1/1/2020 – 12/31/2020 or, if the recovery date was blank, firearms with trace entry dates between 1/1/2020 – 12/31/2020.
  • Duplicate traces, Firearms Not Recovered, Gun Buyback and Firearms Turned In are not included in this figure.
  • Data was extracted from the Firearms Tracing System (FTS) on April 12, 2021.
  • All traces may not have been submitted or completed at the time of this study.

Firearm Types and Calibers with a New Jersey Recovery

  • Includes same criteria as Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced.

Top Categories Reported on Firearm Traces with a New Jersey Recovery

  • Includes same criteria as Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced. Beginning in CY 2010, attempted homicide, attempted suicide and negligent vehicular manslaughter are reported in separate categories.

Top Source States for Firearms with a New Jersey Recovery

  • Includes same criteria as Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced.
  • Traces must identify a purchaser and the state in which the final dealer is located.

Time-to-Crime Rates for Firearms with a New Jersey Recovery

  • Includes same criteria as Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced.
  • Traces must identify a purchaser.
  • Time-to-Crime was calculated for those traces in which the purchase date could be subtracted from the recovery date.

Age of Possessors for Firearms with a New Jersey Recovery

  • Includes same criteria as Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced.
  • Includes traces that provide a possessor and the possessor’s date of birth.
  • Possessor’s age is calculated by subtracting the possessor’s date of birth from the recovery date.

Top Recovery Cities for Firearms with a New Jersey Recovery

  • Includes same criteria as Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced.
  • Includes traces with a recovery city or, if the recovery city was not provided, traces requested by agencies with jurisdiction only within that city.

 

View All 2020 Firearms Trace Data

Last Reviewed November 22, 2021