WASHINGTON - A bipartisan group of senators has reached a deal on legislation that would for the first time create specific federal prohibitions on gun trafficking and the straw purchasing of firearms.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy says the bill would establish tough penalties for those who buy a firearm or ammunition with the intent of transferring it to someone else. The measure also would make it a crime to smuggle firearms out of the United States.
The bill was crafted by Leahy, two other Democrats and two Republicans and will be part of a package of four gun control measures that will be considered Thursday by the Judiciary Committee. The committee has taken the lead on the gun violence issue following the December school shootings in Newtown, Conn.
