American Guns, Mexican Crime

PBS NewsHour/HDNet’s World Report (2009)
“American Guns, Mexican Crime: The Iron River”
(producer)

Violence in Mexico rages on as drug cartel members fight and die for better drug trafficking routes into the U.S., a place where demand for illicit drugs stubbornly persists. Cartel members are killing each other, and innocent bystanders, with high-powered assault rifles purchased from the thousands of American gun stores that line the border with Mexico. This story, aired on both HDNet’s World Report and PBS’ News Hour with Jim Lehrer, examines the relatively unregulated U.S. gun market to understand why it’s so easy for criminals to acquire guns.