Keeping Guns Out of the Wrong Hands
Keeping Guns Out of the Wrong Hands
What is the problem?
Keeping guns out of the hands of people who are likely to harm themselves or others—before they act—is the most effective way to prevent gun violence.
Federal law requires background checks on all gun sales from licensed firearm dealers to ensure that gun buyers do not fall into one of the categories of people prohibited by law from having a gun. But the law does not require background checks on sales from unlicensed sellers, including online or at gun shows—making it easy for a prohibited person to acquire a gun. Federal law also fails to prohibit certain categories of people with particularly dangerous histories, and it does not provide a process through which people who are likely to commit violent acts against themselves or others can be blocked from having access to guns.
What are the solutions?
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Background Checks on All Gun Sales
Background checks are the foundation of any comprehensive gun violence prevention strategy. Current federal law requires that background checks be conducted whenever a person attempts to buy a gun from a licensed gun dealer. This is to ensure that the buyer is not legally prohibited from having the gun.
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Prohibit People With Dangerous Histories From Having Guns
People with dangerous histories should be prohibited from having guns. Federal law prohibits gun possession by certain categories of people. States also set standards for who is too dangerous to have guns. People prohibited by federal or state law will fail a background check if they try to buy a gun from a licensed dealer.
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Extreme Risk Laws
When a person is in crisis and considering harming themselves or others, family members and law enforcement are often the first people to see the warning signs. Extreme Risk laws, sometimes referred to as “Red Flag” laws, allow loved ones or law enforcement to intervene by petitioning a court for an order to temporarily prevent someone in crisis from accessing guns.
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Close the Charleston Loophole
Under federal law, gun purchases may move forward by default after three business days—even if a background check has not been completed. While 90% of federal background checks are completed in minutes, those that take longer than three business days are four times as likely to be denied.
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Gun Dealer Reform
Laws on how gun stores conduct their business have not been strengthened since the 1960s. Congress should pass comprehensive gun dealer reform.
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Require Prohibited People to Turn in Their Guns
Requiring people to turn in their guns when they become legally prohibited from having them helps keep guns out of the wrong hands. Under federal law, there is no affirmative requirement that people who are prohibited from having guns turn in firearms that they already have.
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Stop Downloadable Guns
Downloadable guns, or 3-D printed guns, are serious threats to our communities. The key to stopping the spread of downloadable guns is to stop the spread of the computer code that is used to 3-D print the firearm or its parts.
Featured Resources
Undeniable: How Long-Standing Loopholes in the Background Check System Have Been Exacerbated by COVID-19
Loopholes must be addressed to ensure that guns are not sold without a completed background check.
Update Background Check Laws
Updating federal and state laws to require background checks on all gun sales is a common-sense way to keep guns out of the wrong hands.
All Resources
Keeping Guns Out of the Wrong Hands
All Resources
Gun Violence Survivors in America
This survey explores the breadth of gun violence in America and how it impacts survivors.
Report
Sobrevivientes de violencia con armas de fuego en los Estados Unidos
Esta encuesta explora la amplitud de la violencia con armas de fuego en los Estados Unidos y su impacto en los sobrevivientes.
Report
At the Forefront of Gun Safety: Removing Illegal Guns
While gun violence continues to spike across the country, illegal gun removal programs provide real hope about progress on new solutions.
Policy Paper
Five Things to Know About Crime Guns, Gun Trafficking, and Background Checks
The current patchwork of state laws makes it easy for individuals to traffic firearms from states with weaker gun laws.
Report
The Danger of No-Questions-Asked Gun Sales Between Strangers
These stories are examples of tragedies that could have been prevented if a background check was required when the shooter bought their gun.
Fact SheetUnchecked: An Investigation of the Online Firearm Marketplace
The online firearm marketplace has emerged as a growing market for anonymous gun purchases through websites such as Armslist.
Data Tracker
Extreme Risk Laws Save Lives
Extreme Risk laws, or “red flag” laws, empower family or police to intervene and temporarily prevent someone in crisis from accessing guns.
Fact Sheet
Guns and Violence Against Women: America’s Uniquely Lethal Intimate Partner Violence Problem
Laws keeping guns out of the hands of abusers are associated with lower rates of violence against women and intimate partner homicides.
Report
Stolen Guns Pose a Tremendous Risk to Public Safety
Thousands of guns are stolen every year and often wind up at crime scenes. Stolen guns pose a tremendous risk to public safety.
Fact Sheet
Five Ways to Enhance the Gun Violence Prevention Strategy in Your City
Cities that have sustained success preventing gun violence have deployed multi-disciplinary, community-involved approaches to response and prevention. Below are five steps that you can take…
Fact SheetFatal Gaps
Progress Toward a Stronger Background Check System More than ten years after the Virginia Tech shooting, progress in closing the gaps in state mental…
ReportThe SHARE Act Is Dangerous and Unnecessary
Bottom Line: Silencers pose a significant danger in the wrong hands, making it harder for bystanders or law enforcement to identify and react quickly to…
Fact Sheet