1. Although a background check is required under federal law to buy a handgun, none is necessary for the purchase of a rifle. 2. And the ruling allows police to check voluntarily whether a person is fit to buy a handgun. 3. Anderson said rifles are not subject to the same federal law that requires a five-day waiting period before buying a handgun. 4. A person could buy additional handguns during those five years but would undergo a new background check with each purchase. 5. But Kennedy said outlawing them could simply lead people to buy used handguns instead. 6. But requiring people to be trained before buying a handgun is another matter. 7. For example, only criminals convicted of felonies are currently excluded from buying handguns. 8. His assailant, John Hinckley Jr., bought his handgun at a Dallas pawnshop. 9. Just nine people convicted out of the quarter-million felons who attempted to buy handguns. 10. Law enforcement officers are exempt from the paperwork and background checks needed to buy a handgun in New York. |