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'Instant' gun checks draw fire
Josey1
Member Posts: 9,598 ✭✭
'Instant' gun checks draw fire
Friday, May 30, 2003
BY J. SCOTT ORR
STAR-LEDGER WASHINGTON BUREAU
WASHINGTON -- The Justice Department is putting the "instant" back in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.
The system for checking the backgrounds of prospective gun buyers improved last year to the point that 91 percent of the checks were completed during a single telephone conversation. In 2001, that figure was 71 percent.
"The improvements in the NICS system are helping make our country safer by barring access to firearms by felons, illegal aliens, and others who cannot legally own guns," said Attorney General John Ashcroft.
Still, gun control advocates argue that the program does not go far enough, and is full of loopholes that could allow terrorists or others to gain access to firearms.
Established in 1998, the NICS is used by gun dealers to make sure gun purchasers are not felons, drug addicts, mentally ill or otherwise ineligible to buy firearms. When gun dealers call in, they are given a response of "Proceed" or "Denied" by the FBI.
Since the program began, it has processed 34 million background checks, and approximately 563,000 resulted in denials. In 2001, there were 125,000 denials out of 8.9 million background checks processed. In 2002, there were 8.4 million checks and 121,000 denials.
Of those who denied, 58 percent had felony criminal histories, 24 percent had histories of domestic violence or other prohibited misdemeanors and 5 percent had histories of drug problems. The rest were disqualified because of restraining orders, immigration status, mental problems or other reasons.
Gun control advocates, meanwhile, believe the Justice Department is wrongly using the speed with which it processes background checks as the only gauge of the program's overall success.
"It is clear that the Justice Department is putting speed before accuracy when it comes to background checks," said Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), a key sponsor of the Brady gun control bill that first required background checks 10 years ago.
"Attorney General Ashcroft does not even require the background check system to consult terrorist watch lists. It seems that this administration puts the special interest gun lobby first and the safety of the public second," said Lautenberg.
Peter Hamm, communication director of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, added that although "they're getting speedier, that doesn't mean they're getting smarter."
Both Hamm and Lautenberg criticized the program for a provision that requires the approval of gun purchases if the NICS is unable to complete its background check within three days.
Hamm also noted that states have been slow to enter data on criminals and domestic abusers into the NICS data bases.
The Justice Department is moving to correct this last inadequacy by offering states $48 million in grants to improve their recordkeeping during the current fiscal year.
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/index.ssf?/base/news-9/1054277137147950.xml
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878<P>
Friday, May 30, 2003
BY J. SCOTT ORR
STAR-LEDGER WASHINGTON BUREAU
WASHINGTON -- The Justice Department is putting the "instant" back in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.
The system for checking the backgrounds of prospective gun buyers improved last year to the point that 91 percent of the checks were completed during a single telephone conversation. In 2001, that figure was 71 percent.
"The improvements in the NICS system are helping make our country safer by barring access to firearms by felons, illegal aliens, and others who cannot legally own guns," said Attorney General John Ashcroft.
Still, gun control advocates argue that the program does not go far enough, and is full of loopholes that could allow terrorists or others to gain access to firearms.
Established in 1998, the NICS is used by gun dealers to make sure gun purchasers are not felons, drug addicts, mentally ill or otherwise ineligible to buy firearms. When gun dealers call in, they are given a response of "Proceed" or "Denied" by the FBI.
Since the program began, it has processed 34 million background checks, and approximately 563,000 resulted in denials. In 2001, there were 125,000 denials out of 8.9 million background checks processed. In 2002, there were 8.4 million checks and 121,000 denials.
Of those who denied, 58 percent had felony criminal histories, 24 percent had histories of domestic violence or other prohibited misdemeanors and 5 percent had histories of drug problems. The rest were disqualified because of restraining orders, immigration status, mental problems or other reasons.
Gun control advocates, meanwhile, believe the Justice Department is wrongly using the speed with which it processes background checks as the only gauge of the program's overall success.
"It is clear that the Justice Department is putting speed before accuracy when it comes to background checks," said Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), a key sponsor of the Brady gun control bill that first required background checks 10 years ago.
"Attorney General Ashcroft does not even require the background check system to consult terrorist watch lists. It seems that this administration puts the special interest gun lobby first and the safety of the public second," said Lautenberg.
Peter Hamm, communication director of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, added that although "they're getting speedier, that doesn't mean they're getting smarter."
Both Hamm and Lautenberg criticized the program for a provision that requires the approval of gun purchases if the NICS is unable to complete its background check within three days.
Hamm also noted that states have been slow to enter data on criminals and domestic abusers into the NICS data bases.
The Justice Department is moving to correct this last inadequacy by offering states $48 million in grants to improve their recordkeeping during the current fiscal year.
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/index.ssf?/base/news-9/1054277137147950.xml
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878<P>