Universal Background Checks

Violence and crimes are growing in number and affecting American society. By reinforcing background checks we could reduce crimes and limit easy gun access to mentally ill people. The National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) is a database where the names of people that have committed a misdemeanor, are mentally ill or drug abusers is kept to prevent them from attaining guns. Most criminals buy guns from unlicensed sellers at gun shows that don’t do properly background checks through the NICS, making it easier from criminals to purchase firearms. Another problem is missing records or information that was not reported to the background check system. Better background checks could reduce crime and gun violence in America.

Gun control has been a prevalent issue in the United States since its early years, but has recently taken the spotlight as one of the most controversial, and debated topics in the country with the rise of alarming cases and accessible statistics. Because of our constitution, the right to bear arms has endured throughout the years with little revision. Republicans tend to argue strongly in favor of this amendment on the basis of constitutional right and the need for self-defense. (Waldman, 2017). However, the current lax system of background checks requirements for purchase of a firearm have contributed to numerous casualties and cannot stand without reform. In 2017 alone, 13,899 deaths have occurred at the expense of a gun in the United

According to a report by the Switzerland-based Small Arms Survey, the United States has about 35-50 percent of the world’s civilian-owned guns and has less than 5 percent of the world’s population. With no restriction and so much freedom, firearms can be distributed throughout the United States illegally and obtained as easy as buying it from a person, disregarding all gun laws. Implementing stricter background checks can help reduce the amount of crime relating to gun violence. It can also keep firearms away from those who shouldn’t have possession of them.

Another type of background check that needs to be added and included to every State standard background check is the No Fly List as well as violent repeat offenders and abusers. States need to be running their checks against the No Fly List and Homeland Security; those on the list should be denied the ability to get a gun. We want to stop terrorists, both domestic and foreign, from being able to walk into a store and purchase a gun with no background check. “Depending on one’s perspective, the divergence in states’ approaches to guns either means that some people… are facing dangers of gun violence that could be avoided by enactment of strong gun laws”, while others “are unnecessarily having their freedom and safety impaired by gun laws that only disarm law-abiding individuals” (Rostron, 2016, p. 356) . There are times when an innocent person’s name can appear on the list so we should be prepared with a legal path to clearing that person’s name and removing them from the list. This path should be swift and completed in a timely manner, but each individual should understand we take our safety at the highest regards so we must be thorough.

There are many different ways to improve background checks, and many will take time to assess the most effective way to implement them. Guns are a very lethal weapon and should not be given out to anyone who comes along with a little bit of cash, they should be strictly guarded to keep them out of the hands of the wrong people. People who are mentally ill or just purely have bad intentions are too easy getting their hands on guns without any way to trace the gun to them. Guns are being sold and given away without proper documentation and even stolen from legal gun owners. If we make background checks a very hard and difficult process, which will cut down on the number of people who own them and therefor cutting down on the chances of someone with immoral intentions getting one. Cars are the same way these days. In order to be able to drive a car you have to be able to pass a driving test, along with passing other requirements, such as age requirement and supervision of someone who has their license when you first get your

Therefore, this caused Dylan Roof to buy a gun which he used to kill nine people at a historically black church in South Carolina. In addition, Roof had previously faced drug charges which should refuse his attempt to gun purchase. However, the information was unavailable at the background check system (2015, para. 1). Ressler (2015, para. 4) also states that the current three days’ standard background check time is not enough to process a cross check information between federal databases and states. Furthermore, the author Ferris (2014, para. 3) indicates in his article “Gun Purchase Background Checks: Casting a Wide Net with Many Holes” that NICS has not the complete records, and states have not incentive to report records of people who have prior criminal records and should not own guns. In addition, according to the research in 2012, there is a big part of mental health records from the last two decades can not be found in the NICS. Therefore, the system loophole results in people with criminal records escape the background checks and have access to guns is a significant cause of gun violence (2014, para. 14).

The United States is country that has the largest gun related deaths in the world. A lot of cases happened because the background check system is not strict enough to prevent criminals from purchasing firearms. “Many supporters think that the United States Government should consider having tighter background checks on firearms” (Opposing viewpoints….). This involves the court decisions, gun control laws, and incidents spark calls for reform.

In “The Gun Debate” Patricia Smith explores the effectiveness of gun control and new possible ways to make this country safer. However in “To Carry, or to not Carry” Thomas Willis explains the ways that guns, if operated and cared for properly, can protect you and others around you. The large controversy of whether new gun laws will effective continue to grow larger and more opinionated. After reading both “The Gun Debate” and “To Carry, or to not Carry” I decided that gun laws will be effective. There are many gun sales that go without record or background check of any sort, “... many small scale gun sellers claim to be “hobbyist,” who aren’t required to conduct background checks”(Smith,1).

A supermajority of Americans favor making private gun sales and sales at gun shows subject to background checks, with 80% of republicans and 83% of democrats supporting the idea (Pew Research Center, 2013). However, only 57% supported Senate measures to do so back in 2013, citing that the bills included “restrictions beyond background checks,” and opened a “slippery slope towards more government power,” (Pew Research Center, 2013). Any bill that aims to close the gun show loophole would have to do just that, and nothing more. Extending its reach any farther than that would not garner the same supermajority of support that we found with this relatively simple alternative. Therefore, this policy leaves gun owners with a high amount of liberty, since there will be

The United States is home to approximately 5% of the world’s population and 31% of all mass shootings. Through these mass shootings and various other methods of gun violence, tens of thousands of people die every year. These gun-related deaths primarily originate from murder and children accidentally shooting themselves. Although those in favor of gun control tend to believe that guns should be terminated completely, the second amendment prevents lawmakers from being able to do so. Therefore, in order to combat these causes, alternative gun control solutions must be made for each one. Gun-related murders can be decreased through the use of universal background checks. Additionally, accidental shootings can be minimized through the

This finding might seem as common sense, but employers that draw from a more diverse labor pool may be making finer distinctions in screening applicants, in the interest of reduced liability and monitoring costs. Certainly, employers with a diverse workforce are the most likely to call back African American applicants with a misdemeanor arrest record, because they do not seem to be using the question to screen low-level records. Given racial disparities in criminal justice populations, employers hiring from a diverse applicant pool are especially likely to encounter such records. For similar reasons, we expected and found that employers in the most disadvantaged neighborhoods were very likely to ask a criminal record

According to the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act of 1993, “if the FFL has not been notified within three business days that the sale would violate federal or state laws, the sale may proceed by default.” Three days is not a sufficient period of time to comprehensively assess someone’s mental condition and their ability to safely carry a gun. Another problem regarding mental health background checks is the number of mental health cases that go unreported. Without records detailing a prospective gun buyer’s mental health, there is insufficient evidence to prevent them from buying a firearm. In terms of criminal history, the three-day rule still applies. Additionally, background checks are only mandatory through federally licensed firearms dealers. If ex-convicts were to buy from private sellers, they could buy firearms unrestricted by legislation. The lack of legislation surrounding mental health and criminal history background checks increases the likelihood of firearms falling into the hands of those more likely to abuse

Vernick, Jon S., et al. "Background Checks for All Gun Buyers and Gun Violence Restraining Orders: State Efforts to Keep Guns from High-Risk Persons." Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, vol. 45, 2017 Supplement, pp. 98-102. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1177/1073110517703344.

This just in, the US's gun violence has increased dramatically over the past 10-15 years and has recently gone insanely out of hand from the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting to the 2017 Las Vegas Music Festival shooting. Gun violence is multiplying by the minute due to the easy access of purchasing any type of gun, whether it’s on the internet, your neighbor, a family member, Walmart, and, above all, gun shows. Background checks are performed but, only in stores―yes, gun shows do not require background checks. But, before any purchase at stores, the FBI, in only a few minutes, conducts a background check process to authorize any individual before making a purchase. The important information that is acquired from the background check

The first of these new proposals is the requirement of universal background checks for anyone who wants to purchase a firearm. This will hopefully close some loopholes in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System and prevent criminals and people with a history of mental illness from obtaining firearms (Remarks). As the background check system stands now, people who buy guns from gun shows and other unlicensed sellers do not have to complete a background check (Stopping). For the Columbine massacre on April 20th, 1999, the killers purchased their guns at a gun show from an unlicensed seller, so no background check was performed. On April 16th, 2007 was the shooting at Virginia Tech and this shooter obtained a gun from a licensed gun dealer which he should have been prohibited from buying. He was able to purchase this weapon because his records were never reported to the FBI’s gun background check system. Again in Tucson on January 8th, 2001, a killer acted with guns he should have been prohibited from buying because his records also were not in the database. These considerable loopholes in our current