Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN News

Targeting Criminals, Not Gun Owners

Thursday, August 17, 2006

Targeting Criminals, Not Gun Owners

Beginning in 1997, police in Richmond, Va., began carrying a wallet-sized card (above) that outlined the existing law to prosecute felons caught in possession of a gun.

The card also advised police officers:

“Always ask if the suspect used drugs, i.e., cocaine, heroin, marijuana. Most suspects will deny dealing but readily admit using and that’s all we need to make a federal gun case.”

Billboards across Richmond carried a stark and simple warning:

“An illegal gun gets you five years in federal prison.”

It’s a message--and a sentence--that criminals literally got.

Striking Fear in the Heart of a Killer It was called Project Exile, the brainchild of then-Assistant u.s. Attorney David Schiller, an aggressive effort to arrest, indict, incarcerate, prosecute and sentence every armed felon in Richmond.

It’s precisely what nra has preached for 20 years. So nra immediately made a $100,000 donation and launched a campaign for public support.

Project Exile meant zero tolerance for criminal gun use. No deals. No plea-bargains. No bail. No exceptions. Commit a crime with a gun and you’re done.

It worked like this: A police officer arrests a suspect carrying a gun. He asks the suspect the questions on the card. If the suspect answers “yes”--bang--he’s nailed on a federal gun crime. Conviction meant a mandatory five years in federal prison. No questions asked.

Did it work?

According to police, drug dealers would commonly throw down their guns before running to avoid the punishment they knew Project Exile delivered.

Many criminals stopped carrying a gun when Project Exile was instituted. A Richmond police sergeant reported that when he stopped and searched one suspect, “Right out of his mouth, he goes, ‘Exile will give you five years. I’d be an old man when I got out.’” The man was unarmed.

The bigger picture was much more dramatic:

» In less than two years, Exile had taken 350 armed felons off the streets. Most of those it sent to prison for 4½ years.

» It broke apart a violent gang and helped solve several murders.

» It cut the “gun carry” rate among arrested suspects by more than half.

» All told, it cut Richmond’s murder rate by 62 percent.

So it’s not surprising that in Rochester, Philadelphia, Fort Worth, San Francisco, Birmingham and beyond, one city and state after another has adopted Richmond’s Project Exile model.

Project Exile said with merciless certainty that guns are for the law-abiding, and it’s proof of what nra has been saying for decades: Get tough on criminals, not on our right to own guns, and crime will disappear.

Exiling Armed Felons Nationwide In May 2001, President George Bush introduced a new national effort--Project Safe Neighborhoods--and he pointed to Project Exile as inspiration for the program.

Project Safe Neighborhoods is a nationwide commitment to reduce gun crime by networking existing local programs that target gun crime and providing those programs with additional tools necessary to be successful. The Bush administration committed over $1 billion to this effort in its first four years to put federal muscle behind state and local gun-crime prosecutions.

A companion program is Operation CeaseFire, a joint local, state and federal initiative to aggressively prosecute individuals who unlawfully use, possess or transfer firearms.

Thanks to nra support, prosecution of criminals--not banishment of guns--is the new and effective theme for law enforcement and jurisprudence nationwide.

IN THIS ARTICLE
Crime & Criminal Justice
TRENDING NOW
Nancy Pelosi: Pro-Gun Voters Made an Impact

News  

Monday, November 18, 2024

Nancy Pelosi: Pro-Gun Voters Made an Impact

Congratulations NRA members and other pro-gun voters! Once again, our votes helped make the difference.

Bloomberg’s Mayors, Back in the News!

News  

Monday, November 18, 2024

Bloomberg’s Mayors, Back in the News!

Just a few short weeks ago, we wrote about Michael Bloomberg’s controversy-dogged gun control organization, Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG), and how another high-ranking member of the group had been indicted for allegedly committing serious ...

Make Crime Illegal Again

News  

Monday, November 18, 2024

Make Crime Illegal Again

While less prominent than the red sweep of the nation’s electoral map and the triumph of President Donald Trump, another telling development following the 2024 elections was the number of Californians in ultra-progressive strongholds who ...

Federal District Court Strikes Down IL’s “Assault Weapon” and “Large-Capacity Magazine” Bans in NRA-Supported Case

Saturday, November 9, 2024

Federal District Court Strikes Down IL’s “Assault Weapon” and “Large-Capacity Magazine” Bans in NRA-Supported Case

Today, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois struck down provisions of the Protect Illinois Communities Act (PICA) that prohibit “assault weapons” and “large-capacity magazines” in an NRA-supported case, Barnett v. Raoul.

NRA Files Amicus Brief Arguing that Washington’s Magazine Ban Violates the Second Amendment

Friday, November 15, 2024

NRA Files Amicus Brief Arguing that Washington’s Magazine Ban Violates the Second Amendment

Today, NRA filed an amicus brief in the Supreme Court of the State of Washington in a challenge to Washington’s prohibition on magazines that hold over 10 rounds.

Michigan: Take Action Against "Gun-Free Zone" Bills Today!

Friday, November 15, 2024

Michigan: Take Action Against "Gun-Free Zone" Bills Today!

Yesterday, the Senate Committee on Civil Rights, Judiciary, and Public Safety SB 857 and SB 858 with amendments and the bills will now be eligible for votes on the Senate floor. Please use the take action button below and ...

Grassroots Spotlight: North Carolina Grassroots

Take Action  

Monday, November 18, 2024

Grassroots Spotlight: North Carolina Grassroots

The North Carolina NRA-ILA Grassroots Team recently held an NRA “Day of Action” event to coincide with the start of early voting in the Tarheel State, and to encourage our Second Amendment community to “Get Out and Vote”!

Michigan: House of Representatives to Take Important Vote on Anti-Gun Bills

Tuesday, November 12, 2024

Michigan: House of Representatives to Take Important Vote on Anti-Gun Bills

Tomorrow, the Michigan House of Representatives is expected to vote on two packages of anti-gun bills. Use the take action button below to contact your Representative and urge them to oppose these anti-gun bills!  

PREFILING OF LEGISLATION BEGINS IN TEXAS FOR THE 2025 SESSION

Friday, November 15, 2024

PREFILING OF LEGISLATION BEGINS IN TEXAS FOR THE 2025 SESSION

Prefiling of legislation for the 2025 Regular Session of the Texas Legislature began on Tuesday.  Within the first three days, more than 75 firearm-related bills had been filed, the majority of which were anti-gun measures ...

Michigan: Senate Committee to Vote on Expanding Gun-Free Zones

Tuesday, November 12, 2024

Michigan: Senate Committee to Vote on Expanding Gun-Free Zones

Tomorrow, the Senate Committee on Civil Rights, Judiciary, and Public Safety will take up SB 857 and SB 858. These bills would dramatically expand “gun-free zones” in the state and drastically limit where those with a concealed pistol ...

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.