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Date: November 22, 2024 Fri

Time: 12:18 pm

Results for background check

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Author: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the Inspector General, Audit Division

Title: Audit of the Handling of Firearms Purchase Denials Through the National Instant Criminal Background Check Systems

Summary: The National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) is used by Federal Firearms Licensees, importers, and manufacturers (collectively, "dealers") to determine whether a prospective purchaser is legally prohibited from doing so. The process begins when the person provides a dealer with photo identification and a completed Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Form 4473. The form asks questions corresponding to the categories of persons prohibited by federal law from possessing firearms. Providing false information is a federal crime. If a prospective purchaser answers "yes" to any questions, the sale must be denied. Otherwise, the dealer generally must request a NICS check from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) or their state point of contact. The transfer can occur only if the check does not identify prohibitive criteria, or if it takes more than 3 business days. If 3 business days pass without a determination that the transaction can be approved or must be denied, the dealer can either complete the sale (unless prohibited by local law) or wait for the check to be performed. For approved transactions, identifying information about the purchaser and firearm is purged from NICS within 24 hours pursuant to federal law. For denied transactions, the FBI sends relevant information to ATF's Denial Enforcement and NICS Intelligence (DENI) Branch for possible investigation. For a "delayed denial," where a firearm transfer to a prohibited purchaser occurred because the check took more than 3 business days to complete, ATF is charged with recovering the firearm. Additionally, ATF consults with U.S. Attorneys' Offices (USAO) to decide whether to refer for possible prosecution denial cases that it believes have prosecutorial merit. The Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) undertook this audit to examine (1) the effectiveness of the FBI's quality control processes for NICS transactions, the impact of state reporting and recording on FBI NICS determinations, and the FBI's referral of denied NICS transactions to ATF; (2) ATF's initial screening and referral of denied transactions to its field offices for investigation, and ATF field offices' investigation of denied transactions; and (3) the USAOs' prosecution of crimes associated with denials.

Details: Washington, DC: DOJ, 2016. 66p.

Source: Internet Resource: Audit Division 16-32: Accessed September 30, 2016 at: https://oig.justice.gov/reports/2016/a1632.pdf

Year: 2016

Country: United States

URL: https://oig.justice.gov/reports/2016/a1632.pdf

Shelf Number: 140527

Keywords:
Background Check
Criminal Backgrounds
Firearms
Gun Control
Gun Policy