CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart is backing legislation that will be proposed in the Illinois Senate to ban "ghost guns" in Illinois.
Sheriff Dart said he believes the only reason to have a "ghost gun" is to commit a crime.
"What is a ghost gun? Pure and simple, it is a gun that's untraceable. It's a gun that can be constructed using parts that you can easily get on the internet," he said.
"I defy someone to give us the rationale how these type of guns, guns such as this, what they are useful for. There is no other type of reason to have this gun with no markings on it unless you're going to be committing an offense."
He also said "it's absurd" to think there's a good reason for the existence of "ghost guns".
He says his officers have confiscated more than a dozen of them this year when a couple of years ago they found none. In a news release, the Sheriff's Office quotes the U-S Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives as saying that, last year, 8,700 ghost guns were recovered across the country.
"The last thing we need in our community right now is, not just more guns, but guns that can't be traced," Dart said.
Lt. Gary Contreras, a sheriff's lieutenant, demonstrated how quickly the guns could be put together. He was able put one together in less than nine seconds. Dart said that State Sen. Jackie Collins will be proposing the legislation in the next few days.
"Gun violence is plaguing Illinois' Black and Brown communities, including those in the 16th senate district. The proliferation of guns in our country and in our state drives this problem," Collins said in a statement.
"Getting non-serialized ghost guns off the streets is a step forward in addressing violence so we can start healing our communities."
Under the legislation, it would be against the law in Illinois to have a privately-made gun unless it is registered with the state and has some kind of serial number.
A first-time offense would be a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail. Repeat offenses would jump to a Class 3 felony punishable by up to 5-10 years in prison.
