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In November 1998, President [[Bill Clinton]] directed the [[United States Secretary of the Treasury|U.S. Secretary of the Treasury]] and the [[United States Attorney General|U.S. Attorney General]] (A.G.) to provide recommendations concerning the fact that 25 percent or more of sellers at [[Gun shows in the United States|gun shows]] are not required to run background checks on potential buyers. This was called the gun show loophole.<ref name=DOJ1999January>{{cite web |url=https://www.atf.gov/files/publications/download/treas/treas-gun-shows-brady-checks-and-crime-gun-traces.pdf |title=Gun Shows: Brady Checks and Crime Gun Traces |authors=U.S. Department of the Treasury, U.S. Department of Justice |date=January 1999 |website=atf.gov |publisher=Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) |accessdate=June 27, 2014}}</ref>{{rp|3,12}}<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.nyc.gov/html/om/pdf/2009/pr442-09_report.pdf|title=Gun Show undercover|date=October 2009|page=11|accessdate=June 26, 2014}}</ref><ref name=GAO09709>{{cite web |url=http://www.gao.gov/assets/300/291223.pdf |title=Firearms Trafficking: U.S. Efforts to Combat Arms Trafficking to Mexico Face Planning and Coordination Challenges |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=June 2009 |page= |website=gao.gov |publisher=United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) |id=GAO-09-709 |accessdate=June 27, 2014}}</ref>{{rp|27}} Two months later, ''Gun Shows: Brady Checks and Crime Gun Traces'' was released.<ref name=DOJ1999January/> The Secretary and the A.G. made seven recommendations, including expanding the definition of "gun show," and reviewing the definition of "engaged in the business."
In November 1998, President [[Bill Clinton]] directed the [[United States Secretary of the Treasury|U.S. Secretary of the Treasury]] and the [[United States Attorney General|U.S. Attorney General]] (A.G.) to provide recommendations concerning the fact that 25 percent or more of sellers at [[Gun shows in the United States|gun shows]] are not required to run background checks on potential buyers. This was called the gun show loophole.<ref name=DOJ1999January>{{cite web |url=https://www.atf.gov/files/publications/download/treas/treas-gun-shows-brady-checks-and-crime-gun-traces.pdf |title=Gun Shows: Brady Checks and Crime Gun Traces |authors=U.S. Department of the Treasury, U.S. Department of Justice |date=January 1999 |website=atf.gov |publisher=Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) |accessdate=June 27, 2014}}</ref>{{rp|3,12}}<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.nyc.gov/html/om/pdf/2009/pr442-09_report.pdf|title=Gun Show undercover|date=October 2009|page=11|accessdate=June 26, 2014}}</ref><ref name=GAO09709>{{cite web |url=http://www.gao.gov/assets/300/291223.pdf |title=Firearms Trafficking: U.S. Efforts to Combat Arms Trafficking to Mexico Face Planning and Coordination Challenges |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=June 2009 |page= |website=gao.gov |publisher=United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) |id=GAO-09-709 |accessdate=June 27, 2014}}</ref>{{rp|27}} Two months later, ''Gun Shows: Brady Checks and Crime Gun Traces'' was released.<ref name=DOJ1999January/> The Secretary and the A.G. made seven recommendations, including expanding the definition of "gun show," and reviewing the definition of "engaged in the business."


After the [[Columbine High School massacre]] in April 1999, gun shows and background checks became a focus of national debate.<ref name=BMSG2000>{{cite web |date=January 1, 2000 |title=The debate on gun policies in U.S. and midwest newspapers |url=http://www.bmsg.org/resources/publications/issue-8-the-debate-on-gun-policies-in-US-and-midwest-newspapers |publisher=[[Berkeley Media Studies Group]] |accessdate= }}</ref><ref name=NCSL2000>{{cite web |author=National Conference of State Legislatures |date=June 1, 2000 |title=Colorado After Columbine The Gun Debate. |url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/COLORADO+AFTER+COLUMBINE+THE+GUN+DEBATE.-a063840684 |website=The Free Library by Farlex |publisher=[[Gale (publisher)|Gale Group]] |accessdate= }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://content.thirdway.org/publications/7/AGS_Report_-_No_Questions_Asked_-_Background_Checks_Gun_Shows_and_Crime.pdf|title=No Questions Asked: Background Checks, Gun Shows, and Crime |publisher=[[Americans for Gun Safety Foundation]] |date=April 1, 2001}}</ref> In May, the executive vice president of the [[National Rifle Association]] (NRA) told the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, "We think it is reasonable to provide mandatory, instant criminal background checks for every sale at every gun show."<ref name=LaPierre990527>{{cite web |last=LaPierre |first=Wayne |date=May 27, 1999 |title=Statement of Wayne LaPierre, Executive Vice President, National Rifle Association |url=http://commdocs.house.gov/committees/judiciary/hju63126.000/hju63126_0.htm |type=Testimony |event=Pending Firearms Legislation and the Administration's Enforcement of Current Gun Laws: Hearing Before the Subcommittee on Crime of the Committee of the Judiciary of the House of Representatives One Hundred Sixth Congress First Session |location=Washington, D.C. |website=commdocs.house.gov |accessdate=July 4, 2014 |quote=No loopholes anywhere for anyone.}}</ref>{{rp|118}} Those concerned about the shows believed they were a source of illegally trafficked firearms.<ref name=ATF-FTG2000>{{cite web |url=http://www.atf.gov/pub/fire-explo_pub/pdf/followingthegun_internet.pdf |title=Following the Gun: Enforcing Federal Laws Against Firearms Traffickers |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=June 2000 |publisher=Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20030331095704/http://www.atf.gov/pub/fire-explo_pub/pdf/followingthegun_internet.pdf |archivedate=March 31, 2003}}</ref>{{refn|group=nb|A report released in 2009, 10 years after Columbine, discussed the role that gun shows play in trafficking to Mexico.<ref name=GAO09709>{{cite web |url=http://www.gao.gov/assets/300/291223.pdf |title=Firearms Trafficking: U.S. Efforts to Combat Arms Trafficking to Mexico Face Planning and Coordination Challenges |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=June 2009 |page= |website=gao.gov |publisher=United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) |id=GAO-09-709 |accessdate=June 24, 2014}}</ref>}} Efforts to reverse a key feature of the [[Firearm Owners Protection Act]] (FOPA) by requiring criminal background checks and purchase records on private sales at gun shows, which had become prolific in the U.S. since the law's passage in 1986, were unsuccessful.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Olinger |first1=David |date=February 13, 2000 |title=Dealers live for gun shows |url=http://extras.denverpost.com/news/shot0213.htm |website=Denverpost.com |accessdate=January 29, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Baum |first1=Dan |date=June 8, 2000 |title=What I saw at the gun show |url=http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/what-i-saw-at-the-gun-show-20000608 |website=rollingstone.com |accessdate=January 30, 2015}}</ref>
After the [[Columbine High School massacre]] in April 1999, gun shows and background checks became a focus of national debate.<ref name=BMSG2000>{{cite web |date=January 1, 2000 |title=The debate on gun policies in U.S. and midwest newspapers |url=http://www.bmsg.org/resources/publications/issue-8-the-debate-on-gun-policies-in-US-and-midwest-newspapers |publisher=[[Berkeley Media Studies Group]] |accessdate= }}</ref><ref name=NCSL2000>{{cite web |author=National Conference of State Legislatures |date=June 1, 2000 |title=Colorado After Columbine The Gun Debate. |url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/COLORADO+AFTER+COLUMBINE+THE+GUN+DEBATE.-a063840684 |website=The Free Library by Farlex |publisher=[[Gale (publisher)|Gale Group]] |accessdate= }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://content.thirdway.org/publications/7/AGS_Report_-_No_Questions_Asked_-_Background_Checks_Gun_Shows_and_Crime.pdf|title=No Questions Asked: Background Checks, Gun Shows, and Crime |publisher=[[Americans for Gun Safety Foundation]] |date=April 1, 2001}}</ref> In May, the executive vice president of the [[National Rifle Association]] (NRA) told the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, "We think it is reasonable to provide mandatory, instant criminal background checks for every sale at every gun show."<ref name=LaPierre990527>{{cite web |last=LaPierre |first=Wayne |date=May 27, 1999 |title=Statement of Wayne LaPierre, Executive Vice President, National Rifle Association |url=http://commdocs.house.gov/committees/judiciary/hju63126.000/hju63126_0.htm |type=Testimony |event=Pending Firearms Legislation and the Administration's Enforcement of Current Gun Laws: Hearing Before the Subcommittee on Crime of the Committee of the Judiciary of the House of Representatives One Hundred Sixth Congress First Session |location=Washington, D.C. |website=commdocs.house.gov |accessdate=July 4, 2014 |quote=No loopholes anywhere for anyone.}}</ref>{{rp|118}} Those concerned about the shows believed they were a source of illegally trafficked firearms.<ref name=ATF-FTG2000>{{cite web |url=http://www.atf.gov/pub/fire-explo_pub/pdf/followingthegun_internet.pdf |title=Following the Gun: Enforcing Federal Laws Against Firearms Traffickers |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=June 2000 |publisher=Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20030331095704/http://www.atf.gov/pub/fire-explo_pub/pdf/followingthegun_internet.pdf |archivedate=March 31, 2003}}</ref>{{refn|group=nb|A report released in 2009, 10 years after Columbine, discussed the role that gun shows play in trafficking to Mexico.<ref name=GAO09709/>}} Efforts to reverse a key feature of the [[Firearm Owners Protection Act]] (FOPA) by requiring criminal background checks and purchase records on private sales at gun shows, which had become prolific in the U.S. since the law's passage in 1986, were unsuccessful.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Olinger |first1=David |date=February 13, 2000 |title=Dealers live for gun shows |url=http://extras.denverpost.com/news/shot0213.htm |website=Denverpost.com |accessdate=January 29, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Baum |first1=Dan |date=June 8, 2000 |title=What I saw at the gun show |url=http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/what-i-saw-at-the-gun-show-20000608 |website=rollingstone.com |accessdate=January 30, 2015}}</ref>


==Private sale loophole==
==Private sale loophole==

Revision as of 08:29, 9 January 2016

This article is about a U.S. political term. For information about other kinds of background checks, see Background check.
"Private sale loophole" redirects here. For for another concept also referred to by this name, see Gun show loophole.
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Proposals for universal background checks would require almost all firearms transactions in the United States to be recorded and go through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), closing what is sometimes called the private sale loophole.

Background

Main article: Gun show loophole

In November 1998, President Bill Clinton directed the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and the U.S. Attorney General (A.G.) to provide recommendations concerning the fact that 25 percent or more of sellers at gun shows are not required to run background checks on potential buyers. This was called the gun show loophole.[1]: 3, 12 [2][3]: 27  Two months later, Gun Shows: Brady Checks and Crime Gun Traces was released.[1] The Secretary and the A.G. made seven recommendations, including expanding the definition of "gun show," and reviewing the definition of "engaged in the business."

After the Columbine High School massacre in April 1999, gun shows and background checks became a focus of national debate.[4][5][6] In May, the executive vice president of the National Rifle Association (NRA) told the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, "We think it is reasonable to provide mandatory, instant criminal background checks for every sale at every gun show."[7]: 118  Those concerned about the shows believed they were a source of illegally trafficked firearms.[8][nb 1] Efforts to reverse a key feature of the Firearm Owners Protection Act (FOPA) by requiring criminal background checks and purchase records on private sales at gun shows, which had become prolific in the U.S. since the law's passage in 1986, were unsuccessful.[9][10]

Private sale loophole

In the August 5, 2010, issue of The New England Journal of Medicine, researchers Garen J. Wintemute, Anthony A. Braga, and David M. Kennedy, wrote that gun shows account for only a fraction of all U.S. gun sales and that a more effective strategy would be to make all private-party gun sales go through the screening and record-keeping processes that FFL dealers are required to do.[11] Their report concluded:

"Drawbacks with respect to expense and inconvenience notwithstanding, 83% of self-reported gun owners and 87% of the general population endorsed regulation for all private-party gun sales in a 2008 poll that was conducted for the advocacy organization Mayors Against Illegal Guns. Gun owners gave stronger support to this all-inclusive approach than to a gun-show-only proposal in a 2009 poll conducted for the same organization. Either proposal would face tough sledding on Capitol Hill. It would therefore seem preferable to move forward with the version that is most likely to reduce the rates of firearm-related violence."[11]

Following the December 14, 2012, Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre there were numerous calls for universal background checks,[12][13][14] to close what is now referred to as the "private sale loophole."[15][16][17] In an essay published in 2013, Wintemute said that comprehensive background checks that included private sales would result in a simple, fair framework for retail firearms commerce.[18]: 103  In February 2014, researchers at the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research reported that after the 2007 repeal in Missouri of a long-standing law that required all handgun buyers to pass a background check there was a 23 percent increase in firearms homicides.[19]

Numerous reasons are given by those who oppose universal background checks, including these:

  • The government does not prosecute enough of the attempted buyers who are turned away by the current system;
  • There are already enough gun laws;
  • Background checks are an invasion of privacy;
  • What constitutes a "transfer" might be defined too broadly;
  • Criminals do not submit to background checks.[20]

The editors of Guns & Ammo asked NRA members about why they oppose universal background checks and cited these reasons:

  • They do not stop criminals from committing violent crimes;
  • The only way to properly enforce a universal system would be to require a registration database.[21]

A July 2014 Quinnipiac University poll reported that 92 percent of Americans support universal background checks, including gun owners.[22] However, these results are disputed by gun rights groups like Gun Owners of America.[23] Polls have shown that while the overwhelming majority of Americans support specific gun law proposals, actual expansion of such laws is often met with much less robust levels of support.[24]

Effects of background checks on private sales

According to gun-rights advocate and author, John Lott, part of the impact is on who these universal background checks prevent from buying guns. Lott said that, as of December 2015, background checks added an effective cost of $80 (New York), $60 (Washington state), or $200 (Washington, D.C.) to transferring a firearm. Lott argues that these laws put a tax on guns and can prevent less affluent Americans from purchasing them, and that this disproportionately affects poor minorities who live in high-crime urban areas.[25]

The Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (CSGV) stated that the National Instant Criminal Background Check System has prevented over two million convicted felons and other prohibited persons from purchasing firearms. According to the CSGV, the law also has a prohibitive effect, that deters illegal purchases. Currently, federal law requires criminal background checks only for guns sold through licensed firearm dealers, which account for 60% of all gun sales in the United States. The law allows people not “engaged in the business” of selling firearms to sell firearms without a license or records. In effect, that would mean that two out of every five guns sold in the United States change hands without a background check.[26]

Notes

  1. ^ A report released in 2009, 10 years after Columbine, discussed the role that gun shows play in trafficking to Mexico.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b "Gun Shows: Brady Checks and Crime Gun Traces" (PDF). atf.gov. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF). January 1999. Retrieved June 27, 2014. {{cite web}}: Cite uses deprecated parameter |authors= (help)
  2. ^ "Gun Show undercover" (PDF). October 2009. p. 11. Retrieved June 26, 2014.
  3. ^ a b "Firearms Trafficking: U.S. Efforts to Combat Arms Trafficking to Mexico Face Planning and Coordination Challenges" (PDF). gao.gov. United States Government Accountability Office (GAO). June 2009. GAO-09-709. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
  4. ^ "The debate on gun policies in U.S. and midwest newspapers". Berkeley Media Studies Group. January 1, 2000.
  5. ^ National Conference of State Legislatures (June 1, 2000). "Colorado After Columbine The Gun Debate". The Free Library by Farlex. Gale Group.
  6. ^ "No Questions Asked: Background Checks, Gun Shows, and Crime" (PDF). Americans for Gun Safety Foundation. April 1, 2001.
  7. ^ LaPierre, Wayne (May 27, 1999). "Statement of Wayne LaPierre, Executive Vice President, National Rifle Association". commdocs.house.gov (Testimony). Washington, D.C. Retrieved July 4, 2014. No loopholes anywhere for anyone. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |event= ignored (help)
  8. ^ "Following the Gun: Enforcing Federal Laws Against Firearms Traffickers" (PDF). Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). June 2000. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 31, 2003.
  9. ^ Olinger, David (February 13, 2000). "Dealers live for gun shows". Denverpost.com. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  10. ^ Baum, Dan (June 8, 2000). "What I saw at the gun show". rollingstone.com. Retrieved January 30, 2015.
  11. ^ a b Wintemute, Garen J.; Braga, Anthony A.; Kennedy, David M. (August 5, 2010). "Private-Party Gun Sales, Regulation, and Public Safety". The New England Journal of Medicine. 363 (6). Massachusetts Medical Society: 508–511. doi:10.1056/NEJMp1006326. PMID 20592291. Retrieved June 27, 2014. Published online at nejm.org on June 30, 2010.
  12. ^ Hartfield, Elizabeth (December 24, 2012). "In Gun Control Debate, Arguments for Tougher Background Checks, Better State Reporting". ABC News Internet Ventures. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
  13. ^ Sullum, Jacob (January 11, 2013). "4 Questions About 'Universal Background Checks' for Gun Purchases". Reason.com (Blog). Reason Foundation. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
  14. ^ More universal sources:
  15. ^ Fisher, Kristin (December 15, 2011). "Illegal Internet Gun Sales are Soaring in Virginia". WUSA9. Retrieved February 7, 2015. These Internet sales really are the new gun shows.
  16. ^ Shapiro, Eliza (November 29, 2012). "Gun-Control Lobby Targets Obama, Demands Reform". Daily Beast.
  17. ^ More private sale loophole sources:
  18. ^ Wintemute, Garen J. (2013). "Comprehensive Background Checks for Firearm Sales: Evidence from Gun Shows". In Webster, Daniel W.; Vernick, Jon S. (eds.). Reducing Gun Violence in America. JHU Press. pp. 95–107. ISBN 9781421411101. OCLC 823897002. Retrieved June 27, 2014. {{cite book}}: External link in |chapterurl= (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help)
  19. ^ Webster, Daniel (February 18, 2014). "ID Check Repeal Prompts Spike In Murders, Study Finds" (Interview). Interviewed by Audie Cornish. Retrieved June 30, 2014. {{cite interview}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters: |city= and |deadurl= (help); Unknown parameter |callsign= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |program= ignored (help)
  20. ^ Good, Chris (April 10, 2013). "The Case Against Gun Background Checks". ABC News Internet Ventures. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
  21. ^ "NRA Members: Universal Background Checks 'Not a Solution'". Guns & Ammo. Intermedia Outdoors. May 28, 2013. Retrieved June 30, 2014. {{cite journal}}: Cite uses deprecated parameter |authors= (help)
  22. ^ "July 3, 2014 - Iraq - Getting In Was Wrong; Getting Out Was Right, U.S. Voters Tell Quinnipiac University National Poll; 92 Percent Back Background Checks For All Gun Buys". Quinnipiac University Connecticut. Retrieved 17 November 2014.
  23. ^ Pratt, Erich. "The 92 percent myth". Gun Owners of America. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  24. ^ Carroll, Lauren (5 January 2016). "Laura Ingraham wrongly says claim that 90% support for gun background checks has been debunked". Politifact. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
  25. ^ Lott, John. "Mass Shootings and Gun Control". National Review.
  26. ^ "universal-background-checks". http://csgv.org. CSGV. Retrieved 9 January 2016. {{cite web}}: External link in |website= (help)

Further reading

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