Publication Date: January 2005
What does it say?
Over roughly a five-month period in 2004, 44 known or suspected terrorists attempted to purchase guns from gun dealers in the U.S. Six of the 44 were stopped because they were found to be prohibited purchasers under the Brady Law.
Thirty-five of those known or suspected terrorists had no Brady background check disqualifiers, passed the background check, and walked away with firearms.
How can I use it?
Use the data in this study to advocate for the “Denying Firearms and Explosives to Dangerous Terrorists Act.”
Based on a Bush Administration proposal, this legislation would:
· Provide the Attorney General (AG) with discretionary authority to deny the transfer of a firearm or an explosives license or permit when a background check reveals that the purchaser is a known or suspected terrorist and the AG reasonably believes that the person may use a firearm or explosives in connection with terrorism;
· Implement due process safeguards so an affected person would have an opportunity to challenge a denial by the AG; and
· Protect the sensitive information providing the basis for terrorist watch lists.
Citation
U. S. Government Accounting Office. Gun Control and Terrorism: FBI Could Better Manage Firearm-Related Background Checks Involving Terrorist Watch List Records. Highlights of GAO-05-127 (January 2005)
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