- Author
- Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms
- Title
- Arson: Overview of Technical and Legal Considerations in Utilizing the 1968 Gun Control Act and the 1970 Organized Crime Control Act in the Federal Prosecution of Arson Crimes.
- Coporate
- Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, Washington, DC
- Report
- ATF P3320.1, June 1981, 49 p.
- Keywords
- arson | legislation
- Abstract
- The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), by virtue of its statutory authority under the Gun Control Act of 1968 and Title XI of the Organized Crime ControlAct of 1970, occupies a unique position in Federal law enforcement to address certain types of arson-related crimes. Although arson is basically recognized as a non-Federal problem, State and local authorities often do not have the jurisdictional authority or sufficient investigative resources to deal effectively with a crime of this magnitude. Arson-for-profit schemes are frequently complex, multijurisdictional and geographically unconfining in nature. The presence of organized crime and white-collar criminals further compounds the investigative problem, thus requiring a concerted effort at all levels of government to impact upon this lucrative crime, which has been labeled as a "national epidemic."