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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 20, 2003

SCHUMER, LAUTENBERG: FEDERAL GUN CHECK SYSTEM IS SKIPPING TERRORIST WATCH LISTS

New study being released today finds gaping holes in US gun laws could allow to terrorists to easily obtain assault weapons, explosives, other kinds of dangerous arms

Senators' bills would tighten gun background check system to keep terrorists, criminals, and other prohibited buyers from guns; Ensure more accurate, timely checks

With a new Congressional report being released today showing that holes in US gun laws could let terrorists easily acquire assault weapons and other guns, US Senators Frank Lautenberg and Charles Schumer urged speedy passage of legislation to tighten the FBI's background check system. The National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), the federal database of individuals who cannot legally own firearms, was established in 1994 to ensure that firearms purchasers are first subject to a thorough background check.

"If the last few days are any indication, it's that Al-Qaeda, Hamas and other terrorist groups are still extremely active," Schumer said. "The loopholes in US gun laws are a dream come true for terrorists planning to attack Americans. Right now, if an Al-Qaeda operative living in the US for a few months decided to attack a mall, he could probably erroneously pass the a background check or just go to a gun show where a background check is not needed, and easily get a gun."

The CRS report found, among other things, that federal gun laws could enable foreign terrorists to exploit the general availability of firearms in the United States to carry out terrorist attacks. For example, federal law allows foreigners in the US to purchase firearms after they have been in the country for 90 days. In addition, the report found that federal background checks on prospective gun buyers do not use "terrorist watch" lists used at border crossings and airports.

INS provides NICS with information about only one class of illegal immigrants: those who have already been deported. The terrorist watch list and the list of illegal aliens kept in the INS Non-Immigrant Information System are not shared with NICS. The CRS report cited a significant problem that gun buyers currently must supply only their name for a background check, not a social security or Alien Registration number.

According to Americans For Gun Safety (AGS), terrorist groups have repeatedly tried to acquire guns. In September 2001, just two weeks after the terrorist attacks, a Lebanese terrorist named Ali Boumelhem was caught by federal authorities after buying firearms and spare parts at several Michigan gun shows. Boumelhem, a member of Hezbollah, had been observed buying an assault rifle from a private seller at the gun show, which, because of a loophole in the Brady Act, meant that the seller was not required to perform a background check. AGS found several more instances of terrorists shopping at gun shows, including suspected al Qaeda operatives in Texas and Florida and a known IRA gun-runner in Florida.

Schumer and Lautenberg are sponsoring complementary legislation that would, among other things, permit law enforcement to retain records of weapons transfers indefinitely when the country is at Code Yellow, and require the FBI to improve the NICS database to ensure that foreign nationals suspected of being linked to terrorism are kept from buying and stockpiling guns.

Schumer's bill would, among other things, require federal agencies like the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to make their records available to the NICS database to ensure that ensure more thorough and timely background checks on those who purchasing guns. The legislation would also provide $375 million over three years to states to improve their record keeping and reporting to NICS of information regarding individuals barred from having a gun on a ground for which states maintain records, including:
· Are under indictment or has been convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year;
· Are fugitives from justice;
· Are unlawful users and/or addicts of any controlled substance;
· Have been adjudicated as a mental defective or have been committed to any mental institution;
· Are subject to a court order restraining them from domestic violence;
· Have been convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanor.

Poor record-keeping often leads to delays in the background checks, sometimes inconveniencing legal gun purchasers. By improving NICS record-keeping, the bill would ensure better turnaround times on background checks while keeping guns beyond the reach of prohibited purchasers.

"One way or another, it's inevitable that measures like this are going to pass," Schumer said. "We can either wait for a terror attack to happen or we can act now to close these kind of loopholes. Washington has now been warned three times about ways terrorists can exploit our loopholes to get guns. The White House and Congress are ignoring this at their peril."

Schumer introduced his bill in response to a March 2002 shooting at a Long Island church that killed Reverend Lawrence M. Penzes and Eileen Tosner. Peter J. Troy walked into Britt’s Firearms in Mineola, New York and purchased a .22 caliber semi-automatic rifle. Four days later, he walked into Our Lady of Peace church in Lynbrook and shot and killed Rev. Penzes and Ms. Tosner. Troy had a history of mental health problems, and had been admitted to Bellevue Hospital Center and Nassau University Medical Center on at least two occasions. In addition, Troy’s mother had a restraining order issued against him in February 1998, which he violated at least once. Despite his history of mental illness and violent behavior, Troy was approved to purchase the rifle by a federal background check. There were no records on Peter J. Troy in the NICS at all.

Although the Gun Control Act bars nine categories of individuals, including those who have been “adjudicated as a mental defective or have been committed to any mental institution,” from having a firearm, when a federal background check is performed, only federal databases are accessed. Since many of these records, including those regarding mental health, are kept by the states, unless the information is subsequently provided to the FBI, the federal background check never spots the problem and the purchase goes through.

A report released by AGS in January 2002, revealed that as many as 35 million records are missing from the NICS database. Over a 30-month period, 10,000 criminals obtained a firearm despite a background check because the records couldn’t be checked properly within the 3 days allowed by federal law.

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