They Buy Weapons From Private Sellers
Federal law requires a background check for gun purchases from licensed dealers, but not private sellers at gun shows or elsewhere. Some states have their own laws to close the loophole, requiring a background check or a permit (issued after a background check) for all purchases.
Only 18 states require a background check to buy a gun from any seller.
Mr. Obama’s executive action Tuesday does not expand federal law, but clarifies that some private sellers claiming to be hobbyists exempt from those requirements might need to conduct background checks. The president is also asking Congress for funding to hire 200 new agents and investigators with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and he said the F.B.I. would increase the number of workers processing background checks.
They Fall Under a Broader Category of Mental Illness
According to federal law, individuals cannot buy a gun if a court or other authority has deemed them a “mental defective” or committed them involuntarily to a mental hospital. Only a handful of states prohibit broader categories of people with mental illness from obtaining a gun.
If they have been ordered to outpatient treatment
If a guardian has been appointed to manage their affairs
If they have been voluntarily admitted to a mental hospital
If they have demonstrated threats or been given other certain diagnoses
Their Mental Health Records Are Not Accessible
Mental health records are overwhelmingly under-reported to the federal and state databases scanned during a background check. For example, while the majority of states now have laws that require them to submit records to the F.B.I.’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System, known as NICS, there is little enforcement, and the comprehensiveness of those records vary significantly.
Mr. Obama said Tuesday that the Social Security Administration would start to look at how to link mental health records with criminal background check data. He is also requesting $500 million from Congress to improve basic mental health care.
5,000
4,000
3,000
Mental health records submitted
to NICS per 100,000 residents
2,000
1,000
0
PA
NJ
VA
DE
CA
NY
WA
SC
NE
MI
CO
TX
MN
WV
OR
MO
FL
NC
IA
CT
IL
OH
KY
WI
NM
TN
ID
UT
AZ
ME
KS
MS
NV
HI
MD
DC
IN
AR
GA
ND
SD
LA
AL
VT
OK
RI
WY
MT
NH
AK
MA
More records submitted
Less
NUMBER OF
RECORDS
PER 100,000
RESIDENTS
NUMBER OF
RECORDS
PER 100,000
RESIDENTS
STATE
STATE
Utah
8,240
280
Pennsylvania
718,334
5,618
Idaho
4,383
268
New Jersey
428,935
4,799
Arizona
17,593
261
Virginia
224,079
2,691
Maine
2,697
203
Delaware
2,112
19,759
Kansas
5,749
198
California
625,267
1,611
Mississippi
4,630
155
New York
303,755
1,538
Nevada
4,201
148
Washington
105,314
1,491
Hawaii
1,923
136
South Carolina
70,829
1,466
7,961
Maryland
133
Nebraska
26,204
1,393
Indiana
6,520
99
Michigan
1,264
125,235
District of Columbia
617
94
Colorado
969
51,900
Arkansas
2,464
83
Texas
250,212
928
Georgia
8,263
82
Minnesota
46,012
843
534
72
North Dakota
West Virginia
15,352
830
South Dakota
187
22
Oregon
766
30,421
Louisiana
908
20
Missouri
663
40,170
Alabama
930
19
Florida
655
130,346
Vermont
24
4
North Carolina
642
63,802
Rhode Island
27
3
Connecticut
19,853
552
Oklahoma
26
1
Ohio
46,753
403
Wyoming
1
3
Iowa
398
12,366
Montana
3
0
Illinois
356
45,833
New Hampshire
0
2
Kentucky
348
15,358
Alaska
0
1
Wisconsin
329
18,915
Massachusetts
1
0
New Mexico
321
6,685
Tennessee
286
18,727
Mental health records submitted
to NICS per 100,000 residents
NUMBER OF
RECORDS
PER 100,000
RESIDENTS
NUMBER OF
RECORDS
PER 100,000
RESIDENTS
STATE
STATE
Utah
8,240
280
Pennsylvania
718,334
5,618
Idaho
4,383
268
New Jersey
428,935
4,799
Arizona
17,593
261
Virginia
224,079
2,691
More records submitted
Maine
2,697
203
Delaware
2,112
19,759
Kansas
5,749
198
California
625,267
1,611
Mississippi
4,630
155
Less
New York
303,755
1,538
Nevada
4,201
148
Washington
105,314
1,491
Hawaii
1,923
136
South Carolina
70,829
1,466
7,961
Maryland
133
Nebraska
26,204
1,393
Indiana
6,520
99
Michigan
1,264
125,235
District of Columbia
617
94
Colorado
969
51,900
Arkansas
2,464
83
Texas
250,212
928
Georgia
8,263
82
Minnesota
46,012
843
534
72
North Dakota
West Virginia
15,352
830
South Dakota
187
22
Oregon
766
30,421
Louisiana
908
20
Missouri
663
40,170
Alabama
930
19
Florida
655
130,346
Vermont
24
4
North Carolina
642
63,802
Rhode Island
27
3
Connecticut
19,853
552
Oklahoma
26
1
Ohio
403
46,753
1
Wyoming
3
Iowa
398
12,366
Montana
3
0
Illinois
356
45,833
New Hampshire
0
2
Kentucky
348
15,358
Alaska
0
1
Wisconsin
329
18,915
Massachusetts
0
1
New Mexico
321
6,685
Tennessee
286
18,727
Mental health records submitted
to NICS per 100,000 residents
NUMBER OF
RECORDS
PER 100,000
RESIDENTS
NUMBER OF
RECORDS
PER 100,000
RESIDENTS
STATE
STATE
Utah
8,240
280
Pennsylvania
718,334
5,618
Idaho
4,383
268
New Jersey
428,935
4,799
Arizona
17,593
261
Virginia
224,079
2,691
More records submitted
Maine
2,697
203
Delaware
2,112
19,759
Kansas
5,749
198
California
625,267
1,611
Less
Mississippi
4,630
155
New York
303,755
1,538
Nevada
4,201
148
Washington
105,314
1,491
Hawaii
1,923
136
South Carolina
70,829
1,466
7,961
Maryland
133
Nebraska
26,204
1,393
Indiana
6,520
99
Michigan
1,264
125,235
District of Columbia
617
94
Colorado
969
51,900
Arkansas
2,464
83
Texas
250,212
928
Georgia
8,263
82
Minnesota
46,012
843
534
72
North Dakota
West Virginia
15,352
830
South Dakota
187
22
Oregon
766
30,421
Louisiana
908
20
Missouri
663
40,170
Alabama
930
19
Florida
655
130,346
Vermont
24
4
North Carolina
642
63,802
Rhode Island
27
3
Connecticut
19,853
552
Oklahoma
26
1
Ohio
403
46,753
1
Wyoming
3
Iowa
398
12,366
Montana
3
0
Illinois
356
45,833
New Hampshire
0
2
Kentucky
348
15,358
Alaska
0
1
Wisconsin
329
18,915
Massachusetts
0
1
New Mexico
321
6,685
Tennessee
286
18,727
Mental health records
submitted to NICS
per 100,000 residents
NUMBER OF
RECORDS
PER 100,000
RESIDENTS
STATE
Pennsylvania
718,334
5,618
New Jersey
428,935
4,799
Virginia
2,691
224,079
Delaware
19,759
2,112
More records submitted
California
625,267
1,611
New York
303,755
1,538
Less
Washington
105,314
1,491
South Carolina
70,829
1,466
Nebraska
26,204
1,393
Michigan
1,264
125,235
Colorado
969
51,900
Texas
928
250,212
Minnesota
46,012
843
15,352
West Virginia
830
Oregon
766
30,421
Missouri
663
40,170
Florida
655
130,346
North Carolina
642
63,802
Connecticut
19,853
552
Ohio
403
46,753
Iowa
398
12,366
Illinois
45,833
356
Kentucky
348
15,358
Wisconsin
329
18,915
New Mexico
321
6,685
Tennessee
286
18,727
Utah
8,240
280
Idaho
268
4,383
Arizona
17,593
261
Maine
2,697
203
Kansas
5,749
198
Mississippi
4,630
155
Nevada
4,201
148
Hawaii
1,923
136
Maryland
7,961
133
Indiana
6,520
99
District of Columbia
617
94
Arkansas
2,464
83
Georgia
8,263
82
North Dakota
534
72
South Dakota
187
22
Louisiana
908
20
Alabama
19
930
Vermont
24
4
Rhode Island
27
3
Oklahoma
1
26
Wyoming
3
1
Montana
3
0
New Hampshire
2
0
Alaska
0
1
Massachusetts
1
0