NY just killed the CoBIS law.

[big_cigar]

NY just killed the CoBIS law.

Great news

BILL NUMBER:S459

TITLE OF BILL:
An act
to repeal section 396-ff of the general business law relating to the
pistol and revolver ballistic identification databank

PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To discontinue the
use of the New York Combined Ballistic Identification System (CoBIS) and
to remove the shell casing requirement from state law.

JUSTIFICATION:
It is the conclusion of two studies by
the California Department of Justice conducted two years ago and a 2004
study conducted by the Maryland State Police that the ballistic database
systems in these states are a waste of time, money and manpower. The
Maryland report cited the complete failure of the New York Combined
Ballistic Identification System (CoBIS) to produce a single "hit" on a
gun crime as complete failure of that system. The CoBIS system is
costing taxpayers approximately $4 million per year and it is a
certainty that the State Police could find a better use for those
millions.



http://open.nysenate.gov/legislation/bill/S459-2011

[Al Norris]

Let's hope that the NY legislature shows good sense passes this.

[Tom Servo]

That was unexpected. Not unmerited, just unexpected.

The Maryland case they quoted stems from that state's misadventure with a ballistic fingerprinting program known as MD-IBIS, which ran from 2001 to 2004. It cost $2.6 million, and according to the state's own study:

(…) one year later, the Maryland State Police Forensic Sciences Division reversed course, citing “the failure of the MD-IBIS to provide any meaningful hits." [It] has not met expectations and does not aid in the Mission statement of the Department of State Police. (...) [MD-IBIS] had not proven to be a time saving tool for the firearms examiner or an investigative enhancement to the criminal investigator (…) it has simply failed in the mission and vision concepts originally established for the program.

That, in addition to several studies by SAAMI, pretty much proved the whole idea to be junk science. Of course, reason doesn't always enter into it, and New York stuck to the guns, so to speak. Good to see they're coming around.

[JimPage]

This wasn't so unexpected. Cuomo state clearly last December or so that he wanted to do away with it. Unfortunately he seems to favor the micro stamping, but I doubt that will pass the legislature.

[44 AMP]

Nice to see that in an era when they are all crying about not having enough money that they are considering actually doing away with an expensive program that NEVER WORKED!

Often they prefer to alarm us with cuts (and proposed cuts) to vital necessary services, to encourage us to give them more money, leaving the usless programs alone, continuing to waste tax monies.

[KyJim]

NY just killed the CoBIS law.

Unless I've misread it, the law is not dead yet. It's on its sick bed.

[langenc]

Canada done away with their registration. Now if we could just get MI to get rid of handgun reg we would be ok.

[Tom Servo]

IIRC, Canada still has registration for handguns and "restricted" long guns.