Steven Mace
02-11-2002, 07:23 PM
Published 2/11/2002
Gun law gaps allowing felons to buy weapons
Some slip through cracks in safety checks
Gaps in Michigan's gun laws have allowed more than 400 felons to buy firearms since 1999, a national report shows.
That's partially because Michigan computerizes only three out of four records of felony convictions, allowing prohibited buyers to purchase guns even after background checks, according to the Americans for Gun Safety Foundation.
It takes time to search for decades-old paper records. That's a problem because gun dealers can sell firearms if the background check takes longer than three days.
So guns end up being sold to those who aren't allowed to have them.
Those sales leave police in Michigan and across the nation scrambling to retrieve the handguns, shotguns and rifles from people with felony records, according to the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
And the sales leave some police nervous.
"It puts the general public in danger, not to mention officers that come in contact with the felons," Lansing police Lt. Raymond Hall said.
The Jan. 16 report, labeled "Broken Records," showed 406 Michigan felons bought guns - the seventh-highest number of illegal purchases nationwide, according to the ATF.
The gun safety foundation gave failing grades to 22 states for having inadequate criminal, domestic violence and mental disability records. Michigan received a B-minus - better than other Midwest states such as Ohio and Indiana, which received F's.
"We have significant holes in the background-check system," said Carolynne Jarvis, executive director of the Michigan Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence. "It does not make sense to arm people who have a track record of not respecting laws."
After the report was released, ATF spokesman Jim Crandall said the real number of felons buying guns is about 30 percent less than the numbers reported.
Investigations show legitimate buyers sometimes shared the same name as a felon.
Or the buyer was convicted of a felony that would block gun ownership in one state, but not in another.
The foundation stands by its report.
"We got those numbers from the ATF, so if they are adjusting their numbers, it would be silly to dispute that," foundation spokesman Caleb Shreve said.
There are efforts under way to close loopholes in the background-check system.
"The reality is criminal justice records cannot be shared to the extent the general public believes," Eaton County Prosecutor Jeffrey Sauter said.
Ross Dykman, executive director of the Michigan Coalition for Responsible Gun Owners, says no system is perfect.
"But most people who are put on hold or flagged are eventually approved because of a wrong name, or common name, incorrect spelling or mistaken identity," he said.
If it turns out the gun buyer indeed was a felon, the ATF retrieves the firearm.
"We have to do the nasty work," Crandall said.
The National Rifle Association said shortcomings in background checks is old news. A spokeswoman blamed the Clinton administration for not creating a more complete national background-check system.
"We welcome the AGS to this debate, however they're about 15 years late," NRA spokeswoman Kelly Whitley said. "The problem with this study is that their solution is to put more restrictions on responsible gun owners."
ATF statistics show background checks did stop 1,761 Michigan felons from buying guns between December 1998 and June 2001. That's about 10 percent of the national total.
The foundation asked unsuccessfully for the state and the FBI to show whether any gun-related crimes were committed by the felons wrongly allowed to buy guns.
"It would add a little more bite to this report," Shreve said. "It is illegal for a convicted felon to purchase a gun. So right there, it's a crime."
State police spokesman Mike Prince declined to comment on the foundation's report, saying department officials had not reviewed it.
State and federal agencies both do background checks in Michigan. State police do research for handgun sales, while the FBI does shotgun and rifle checks using its National Instant Criminal Background Check System.
The original Brady Law included mandatory waiting periods, which remained in place until 1998, when the FBI's system was launched to run instant background checks on prospective gun buyers.
That year, 44,000 people nationwide were denied gun permits because of felony convictions or indictments, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Statistics for Michigan were not available.
When someone applies for a gun permit, the FBI notifies the state police.
The department then investigates the person's criminal record.
If the check uncovers a felony charge, the state searches for the disposition, sometimes by calling the court that handled the case.
But if background checks take longer than three days, dealers can sell the firearm.
That scenario has played out several times at Lansing's Moose Creek Archery, Gun & Tackle, gun dealer Delain Swain said.
"Once we complete the sale we've had a couple where local authorities have had to go after the person," Swain said. "But that's not very many."
The problem is police agencies from the smallest village to the state police cannot always share conviction information because some computer systems are incompatible.
And some records are on paper, taking clerks days to retrieve them from storage.
Some courts have computerized records that are readily accessible.
"But depending on the year of the conviction, if it was back in the '70s or '80s, that's difficult to get," said Kevin Turner, program manager of the Michigan State Police's firearms record unit.
http://www.lsj.com/news/local/020211_guns_1a-7a.html
Steve Mace
Gun law gaps allowing felons to buy weapons
Some slip through cracks in safety checks
Gaps in Michigan's gun laws have allowed more than 400 felons to buy firearms since 1999, a national report shows.
That's partially because Michigan computerizes only three out of four records of felony convictions, allowing prohibited buyers to purchase guns even after background checks, according to the Americans for Gun Safety Foundation.
It takes time to search for decades-old paper records. That's a problem because gun dealers can sell firearms if the background check takes longer than three days.
So guns end up being sold to those who aren't allowed to have them.
Those sales leave police in Michigan and across the nation scrambling to retrieve the handguns, shotguns and rifles from people with felony records, according to the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
And the sales leave some police nervous.
"It puts the general public in danger, not to mention officers that come in contact with the felons," Lansing police Lt. Raymond Hall said.
The Jan. 16 report, labeled "Broken Records," showed 406 Michigan felons bought guns - the seventh-highest number of illegal purchases nationwide, according to the ATF.
The gun safety foundation gave failing grades to 22 states for having inadequate criminal, domestic violence and mental disability records. Michigan received a B-minus - better than other Midwest states such as Ohio and Indiana, which received F's.
"We have significant holes in the background-check system," said Carolynne Jarvis, executive director of the Michigan Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence. "It does not make sense to arm people who have a track record of not respecting laws."
After the report was released, ATF spokesman Jim Crandall said the real number of felons buying guns is about 30 percent less than the numbers reported.
Investigations show legitimate buyers sometimes shared the same name as a felon.
Or the buyer was convicted of a felony that would block gun ownership in one state, but not in another.
The foundation stands by its report.
"We got those numbers from the ATF, so if they are adjusting their numbers, it would be silly to dispute that," foundation spokesman Caleb Shreve said.
There are efforts under way to close loopholes in the background-check system.
"The reality is criminal justice records cannot be shared to the extent the general public believes," Eaton County Prosecutor Jeffrey Sauter said.
Ross Dykman, executive director of the Michigan Coalition for Responsible Gun Owners, says no system is perfect.
"But most people who are put on hold or flagged are eventually approved because of a wrong name, or common name, incorrect spelling or mistaken identity," he said.
If it turns out the gun buyer indeed was a felon, the ATF retrieves the firearm.
"We have to do the nasty work," Crandall said.
The National Rifle Association said shortcomings in background checks is old news. A spokeswoman blamed the Clinton administration for not creating a more complete national background-check system.
"We welcome the AGS to this debate, however they're about 15 years late," NRA spokeswoman Kelly Whitley said. "The problem with this study is that their solution is to put more restrictions on responsible gun owners."
ATF statistics show background checks did stop 1,761 Michigan felons from buying guns between December 1998 and June 2001. That's about 10 percent of the national total.
The foundation asked unsuccessfully for the state and the FBI to show whether any gun-related crimes were committed by the felons wrongly allowed to buy guns.
"It would add a little more bite to this report," Shreve said. "It is illegal for a convicted felon to purchase a gun. So right there, it's a crime."
State police spokesman Mike Prince declined to comment on the foundation's report, saying department officials had not reviewed it.
State and federal agencies both do background checks in Michigan. State police do research for handgun sales, while the FBI does shotgun and rifle checks using its National Instant Criminal Background Check System.
The original Brady Law included mandatory waiting periods, which remained in place until 1998, when the FBI's system was launched to run instant background checks on prospective gun buyers.
That year, 44,000 people nationwide were denied gun permits because of felony convictions or indictments, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Statistics for Michigan were not available.
When someone applies for a gun permit, the FBI notifies the state police.
The department then investigates the person's criminal record.
If the check uncovers a felony charge, the state searches for the disposition, sometimes by calling the court that handled the case.
But if background checks take longer than three days, dealers can sell the firearm.
That scenario has played out several times at Lansing's Moose Creek Archery, Gun & Tackle, gun dealer Delain Swain said.
"Once we complete the sale we've had a couple where local authorities have had to go after the person," Swain said. "But that's not very many."
The problem is police agencies from the smallest village to the state police cannot always share conviction information because some computer systems are incompatible.
And some records are on paper, taking clerks days to retrieve them from storage.
Some courts have computerized records that are readily accessible.
"But depending on the year of the conviction, if it was back in the '70s or '80s, that's difficult to get," said Kevin Turner, program manager of the Michigan State Police's firearms record unit.
http://www.lsj.com/news/local/020211_guns_1a-7a.html
Steve Mace