The Bloomberg sting
The Bloomberg sting
The Columbus Dispatch: An undercover operation launched by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has drawn unflattering attention to the role Ohio plays in illegal sales of guns to criminals, the mentally ill and others prohibited from owning them.
Investigators posing as people who would not be able to pass criminal-background checks found few obstacles to buying firearms at gun shows in Columbus, Niles, Sharonville and Trotwood. .
Under federal law, licensed dealers are required to run background checks of all gun purchasers. But private sellers do not have to run checks even though they are prohibited by law from selling to someone they suspect would fail such a check.
Members of Congress should see that extending background checks to private sales wouldn’t put a new gun-control law on the books. It simply would give police a tool to thwart people breaking existing laws with impunity.