Divisions | Investigative Services Division | Firearms Unit
Tel: 946-6288 or 946-7033
The Department's Firearms Unit was created in 1990 as part of Investigative Services. It was formed as the result of concern over the increased use of firearms and violent crimes. The number of guns being purchased, the increase in requests for gun permits, the crimes perpetrated with the use of a firearm, and the large caches of guns police confiscated from arrests were all factors which illustrated the need for a specialized unit. The unit was developed to help centralize the investigation of all types of firearm incidents/complaints.
The Firearms Unit is involved in all levels of gun investigations, from sales, gun permits, firearms use and assaults, to firearm trafficking. Unit personnel closely monitor and investigate applications to purchase guns, especially in instances when large amounts of guns are being purchased by individuals. Their focus is also to prevent legally purchased guns from being re-sold illegally to be used in crimes such as assaults or to proliferate the gun trade.
Investigators assigned to the unit work in conjunction with federal and state agencies such as the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, & Firearms, the FBI, the U.S. Attorney's Office, State's Attorney's Office, and State Police in their investigations. The establishment of the New Haven Firearms Unit was the beginning of a multi-level joint effort on the part of law enforcement to focus on gun control.
