Firearms Trace Data: Louisiana - 2023

Data Source: Firearms Tracing System

January 1, 2023 – December 31, 2023

 

Contents

  1. ATF Firearms Trace Data Disclaimer
  2. Table: Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced in Louisiana in Calendar Year 2023
  3. Table: Firearm Types with a Louisiana Recovery
  4. Table: Top Calibers Reported on Firearm Traces with a Louisiana Recovery
  5. Table: Top Categories Reported on Firearm Traces with a Louisiana Recovery
  6. Table: Top 15 Source States for Firearms with a Louisiana Recovery
  7. Table: Time-To-Crime Rates for Firearms with a Louisiana Recovery
  8. Table: Age of Possessors for Firearms with a Louisiana Recovery
  9. Table: Top Recovery Cities for Firearms with a Louisiana 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 investigative 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 Louisiana in Calendar Year 2023

14,229

 

Firearm Types with a Louisiana Recovery

January 1, 2023 – December 31, 2023
Pistols 11,018
Rifles 1,457
Revolvers 923
Shotguns 637
Machinegun Conversion Devices 62
Derringers 50
Receivers/Frames 47
Machineguns 17
Other* 18

* Other includes Unknown Types, Destructive Devices, an Any Other Weapon and a Silencer.

 

Top Calibers Reported on Firearm Traces with a Louisiana Recovery

January 1, 2023 – December 31, 2023
9mm 6,556
.40 Cal 1,817
.22 Cal 992
.380 Cal 725
.45 Cal 662
12GA 442
MULTI 404
.38 Cal 389
5.56mm 364
7.62mm 364

NOTE: There were 1,359 additional traces that were associated with other calibers.​ There were 155 traces with an unknown caliber.

 

Top Categories Reported on Firearm Traces with a Louisiana Recovery

January 1, 2023 – December 31, 2023
Possession of Weapon 2,950
Firearm Under Investigation 2,266
Found Firearm 1,582
Dangerous Drugs 1,556
Carrying Prohibited Weapon 834
Aggravated Assault 808
Weapon Offense 761
Property Crimes 618
Homicide 479
Family Offense 343

NOTE: There were 2,032 additional traces that were associated with other categories.

 

Top 15 Source States for Firearms with a Louisiana Recovery

January 1, 2023 – December 31, 2023
Louisiana 9,610
Texas 859
Mississippi 484
Alabama 203
Georgia 173
Florida 115
Arkansas 102
Tennessee 89
North Carolina 41
Oklahoma 41
Ohio 40
Kentucky 39
California 36
Missouri 36
South Carolina 31

NOTE: An additional 32 states accounted for 313 other traces. The source state was identified in 12,212 total traces.

 

Time-To-Crime Rates for Firearms with a Louisiana Recovery

January 1, 2023 – December 31, 2023
Under 3 Months 817
3 Months to Under 7 Months 770
7 Months to Under 1 Year 990
1 Year to Under 2 Years 2,144
2 Years to Under 3 Years 1,833
3 Years and Over 5,631

1/1/2023-12/31/2023 Louisiana Average Time-to-Crime: 6.17 Years

1/1/2023-12/31/2023 National Average Time-to-Crime: 6.76 Years

 

Age of Possessors for Firearms with a Louisiana Recovery

January 1, 2023 – December 31, 2023
17 and Under 677
18 to 21 1,819
22 to 24 1,210
25 to 30 1,935
31 to 40 2,165
41 to 50 1,155
Over 50 743

1/1/2023-12/31/2023 Louisiana Average Age of Possessor: 31 Years

1/1/2023-12/31/2023 National Average Age of Possessor: 35 Years

 

Top Recovery Cities for Firearms with a Louisiana Recovery

January 1, 2023 – December 31, 2023
New Orleans 2,915
Baton Rouge 1,627
Shreveport 1,287
Lake Charles 598
Monroe 470
Lafayette  422
Alexandria 362
Slidell 328
Metairie 273
Haughton 240

NOTE: There were 287 additional municipalities that accounted for 5,698 other traces. The recovery city could not be determined for nine traces.

 

Analytical Criteria Used to Compile the Enclosed Statistics

Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced

  • Includes traces with a recovery state of Louisiana. Traces in which the recovery state was not provided were included when the requesting agency state was equal to Louisiana.
  • Includes Firearms Recovered and Traced between 1/1/2023 – 12/31/2023 or, if the recovery date was blank, firearms with trace entry dates between 1/1/2023 – 12/31/2023.
  • 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 10, 2024.
  • All traces may not have been submitted or completed at the time of this study.

Firearm Types and Calibers with a Louisiana Recovery

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

Top Categories Reported on Firearm Traces with a Louisiana Recovery

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

Top Source States for Firearms with a Louisiana 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 Louisiana 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 Louisiana 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 Louisiana 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 2023 Firearms Trace Data

Last Reviewed December 9, 2024