Report: 2024 Federal Gun Control Enforcement Fell Off But Remained Aggressive

Federal gun control enforcement actions by the ATF in the last year of the Biden administration dropped significantly, falling to levels not seen since before President Trump’s record-breaking crackdown in his first term. The drop marked the lowest level in at least nine years.

That’s not to say the agency sat back and did nothing. Despite the significant decrease, enforcement levels remained aggressive.

Cases Recommended for Prosecution

The 7,432 cases recommended for prosecution in 2024 decreased significantly from record levels hit by President Trump and Biden through the first three years of the Biden administration. This recommendation rate was on par with Obama-era levels from 2014 (7,577) and 2015 (7,516), but lower than 2016 (8,805), the final year of Obama’s presidency.

2024 – 7,432
2023 – 9,964
2022 – 10,138
2021 – 11,224
2020 – 8,025
2019 – 11,319
2018 – 10,691
2017 – 9,591
2016 – 8,805
2015 – 7,516
2014 – 7,577

Indicted Cases

Federal prosecutors obtained indictments in 4,774 cases in 2024.

Before comparing yearly statistics, it’s important to understand how the ATF tracks its data. The ATF provides this clarification: “cases and defendants indicted, convicted, and sentenced are not subsets of cases and defendants recommended for prosecution in FY 2022. The snapshot presents actual judicial activity in the fiscal year regardless of the year the matter was recommended for prosecution.”

This means cases may be counted in different years depending on when they move through the judicial system. As the ATF further explains, “percentage indicted” should not be calculated based upon the presented data, as the case indicted may have been presented in a previous fiscal year.”

2024 – 4,774
2023 – 6,592
2022 – 6,315
2021 – 7,532
2020 – 6,934
2019 – 8,360
2018 – 7,630
2017 – 7,137
2016 – 6,357
2015 – 5,503
2014 – 5,310

In all, federal prosecutors indicted 6,920 individual defendants in 2024. This represented a 28.8 percent decrease compared to 2023 and a significant drop from the record levels seen during 2019-2021. The 2024 indictment figures are closest to 2014-2015 levels (5,310 and 5,503 respectively), continuing the pattern of returning to Obama-era enforcement numbers.

Convictions

The ATF secured convictions in 4,126 cases in 2024.

This conviction rate was comparable to Obama-era levels (4,031 in 2015 and 4,482 in 2014) but substantially lower than the average during the Trump administration and the first three years of Biden’s term.

Despite the significant decrease in his final year, Biden’s administration still recorded the second-highest average annual conviction rate (5,328 cases per year over 4 years) in the reviewed period, behind the Trump administration (5,905 cases per year over 4 years) which holds the highest average.

2023 – 5,881
2022 – 5,338
2021 – 5,967
2020 – 5,181
2019 – 6,887
2018 – 5,485
2017 – 6,068
2016 – 5,517
2015 – 4,031
2014 – 4,482

In total, federal prosecutors convicted 5,911 individual defendants in cases brought by the ATF in 2024. This represents a 25.3 percent decrease from the 7,917 defendants convicted in 2023, and a significant drop from the peak years of 2019-2023. The 2024 defendant conviction count is most comparable to Obama-era levels, though still higher than the 2014-2015 figures.

Case Types

The ATF also investigates arson, cases involving explosives, and alcohol and tobacco cases, but these make up a small percentage of the total. In 2024, 90 percent of all cases were related to firearms, matching the percentage from 2023. Under the Trump administration, 92 percent of the cases investigated by the ATF involved firearms, while under Obama, the percentage was slightly lower at 90 percent.

Additionally, as shown in the chart below, the vast majority of enforcement actions were for paperwork violations, with issues regarding ATF Form 4473 (the Firearms Transaction Record) accounting for five of the top ten most frequently cited violations.

The Lesson?

As demonstrated by the statistical breakdown above, aggressive federal gun control enforcement transcends party lines, not being limited to the Biden administration or Democratic presidencies in general. The data reveals a pattern where both major political parties have consistently enforced federal gun control measures despite the clear language of the Second Amendment.

Perhaps surprising to many observers, the data clearly shows that the Trump administration maintained significantly higher levels of enforcement than the Biden administration, particularly in Trump’s peak years. Biden’s final year (2024) saw enforcement actions drop dramatically to levels 30-40% below Trump’s average, returning to pre-Trump enforcement numbers.

During a public appearance in 2019, President Donald Trump proudly reminded us about his gun control credentials, bragging that his administration implemented new gun control and conducted more enforcement actions than any president in history. He still holds that record today.

ATF enforcement of federal gun control under Trump in year one increased at roughly the same trajectory as it did during the last three years of Obama’s second term, and it continued at roughly the same pace until the pandemic temporarily reduced enforcement activities.

With the pandemic constraints lifted, the Biden administration largely maintained the established pattern of aggressive enforcement of federal gun laws. The substantial reduction in ATF enforcement actions during 2024 represents the lowest level in nine years, marking a clear departure from previous patterns under both the Trump and early Biden administrations.

The bottom line is we can’t trust anybody in Washington D.C. to protect the 2nd Amendment and the right to keep and bear arms.

In fact, if the government followed the Constitution, the ATF wouldn’t exist. All federal gun control laws are unconstitutional. Under the Constitution, there is nothing for the ATF to enforce.

Even among the strongest supporters of “gun rights,” most hold the view that the Second Amendment allows for “reasonable” federal regulation of firearms. But as originally understood, the Second Amendment includes no such exceptions. Constitutionally speaking, the federal government should not regulate the manufacture or private ownership of firearms.

At all.

There wasn’t an asterisk after “shall not be infringed.” No terms and conditions apply.

The bottom line is we can’t trust either Republicans or Democrats in Washington D.C. to uphold the Second Amendment.

Footnote 1

All enforcement statistics were taken from the following ATF Fact Sheets