"Calif. Attorney General Pushes for Law Requiring Handgun Ammo to Carry Traceable"
Associated Press (10/07/04); Marquez, Jeremiah
California Attorney General Bill Lockyer supports legislation that would place a microscopic code on handgun ammunition for tracking by law enforcement. The codes would be stored in a statewide tracking system, which would also contain information about the purchasers. The system would reportedly be the first of its kind in the country and manufacturers would incur added costs of no more than 1 cent per bullet for placing the codes on slugs and casings. Gun and ammunition makers and firearm organizations oppose the measure, on the grounds that it would only complicate matters. Randy Rossi, who heads the firearm division of the Justice Department, reports that in a recent demonstration,180 out of 200 coded bullets were still readable after being fired at walls, car doors, and gelatin to simulate human targets. Lockyer says he has discussed with state legislators the possibility of proposing a bill to create a bullet coding system next year.
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