‘(This) was an ... alarmingly overbroad and dangerous decision.’
WASHINGTON — Tens of thousands of people wanted by law enforcement officials have been removed this year from the FBI criminal background check database that prohibits fugitives from justice from buying guns.
The names were taken out after the FBI in February changed its legal interpretation of “fugitive from justice” to say it pertains only to wanted people who have crossed state lines.
What that means is that those fugitives who were previously prohibited under federal law from purchasing firearms can now buy them, unless barred for other reasons.
Since the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) was created in 1998, the background check system has prevented 1.5 million people from buying guns, including 180,000 denials to people who were fugitives from justice, according to government statistics.
It is unclear how many people may have bought guns since February who previously would have been prohibited from doing so.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions sent a memo Wednesday to the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives instructing them to take several steps to improve NICS.
The system, he said, is “critical for us to be able to keep guns out of the hands of those ... prohibited from owning them.”
The criminal background check system has come under scrutiny in recent weeks after the Air Force said it failed to follow poli- cies for alerting the FBI about the domestic violence conviction of Devin Kelley, who killed more than two dozen churchgoers in Sutherland Springs, Texas, this month. Because his conviction was not entered into NICS, Kelley was allowed to buy firearms.
Two years ago, Dylann Roof, who killed nine peo- ple at a historic black church in Charleston, S.C., was able to buy his gun after errors by the FBI and local law enforce- ment led to his name not being entered into crimi- nal record databases when he was arrested and had admit- ted to drug possession.
The interpretation of who is a “fugitive from justice,” a category that disqualifies people from buying a gun, has long been a matter of debate in law enforcement circles — a dispute that ultimately led to the February purging of the database.
“Any one of these potentially dangerous fugitives can currently walk into a licensed gun dealer, pass a criminal background check, and walk out with a gun,” Robyn Thomas, executive director of the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, wrote in a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray on Wednesday. The Giffords organization, founded by former Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, called on the FBI and ATF to “correct this self-inflicted loophole” correct, purging the NICS database of every single individual previously identified as a fugitive from justice was an unjustifiable, alarmingly overbroad, and dangerous decision,” the Giffords group’s Thomas and Robin Thurston of the Democracy Forward Foundation wrote.
Federal law enforcement officials say that about and recover all guns illegally 430,000 names of wanted purchased this year because people removed from the of the purge of names from database were from Massathe database. chusetts.
For more than 15 years, Commissioner James the FBI and ATF disagreed Slater of the Massachusetts about who exactly was a fugiDepartment of Criminal Justive from justice. tice Information Services
The FBI, which runs the said that the reason that his criminal background check state had so many fugitives database, had a broad defi- in the FBI database is that nition and said that anystate policy required sending one with an outstanding the bureau the names of all arrest warrant was prohib- people with an outstanding ited from buying a gun. But warrant, whether it was for ATF argued that, under the misdemeanors or felonies. law, a person is considered Because Massachusetts a fugitive from justice only state law prevents fugitives if they have an outstanding from buying guns, those indiwarrant and have also trav- viduals have now been added eled to another state. back to the federal database
In a 2016 report, Inspec- under the “state prohibitor” tor General Michael Horowcategory and will be preitz urged the Justice Departvented from purchasing a ment to address the disagree- firearm, he said. ment “as soon as possible.” Of the 70,000 others Late last year, before Presiwhose names have been dent Trump took office, the purged, the FBI is working Justice Department Office with the states to identify of Legal Counsel sided with which people might have ATF and narrowed the defi- crossed state lines and could nition of fugitives, accordbe put back into the federal ing to law enforcement offi- database for that or other cials. The office said that gun reasons. purchases could be denied Sessions in his memo only to fugitives who cross directed the FBI and ATF state lines. to work with the Defense
After Trump was inaugu- Department and other govrated, the Justice Department ernment agencies to improve further narrowed the defini- reporting and identify any tion to those who have fled other measures that could across state lines to avoid be taken to prevent guns getprosecution for a crime or ting into the wrong hands. to avoid giving testimony in David Chipman, a former a criminal proceeding. ATF official who now works
On Feb. 15, the FBI directed as a senior adviser to the Gifits employees in the Crimifords group, said that, given nal Justice Information Ser- the confusion over the defivices Division to remove all nition of a fugitive, Congress entries of fugitives from jus- should pass a new law that tice from the background makes clear whether people check database and said that with outstanding arrest war“entries will not be permit- rants can buy a gun. ted” under that category “I would imagine 99 peruntil further notice. Before cent of Americans don’t want the FBI memo, there were people who have a warrant about 500,000 people idenout on them to be able to tified as fugitives from justice buy a gun,” Chipman said. “I in the database — and all of can’t believe there is a conthose names were removed. stituency for wanted people. Now there are 788. Wanted people are partic“Even if the FBI’s revised ularly dangerous. They’ve definition of fugitive from jus- already proven that they’ll tice is assumed to be legally break the law.”
Giffords Center
Robyn Thomas