Guns available, no background checks necessary

by David Safier

An undercover investigator called a gun seller on a website listing classified ads for guns. The investigator said he couldn't pass a background check. No problem. He met the seller and bought the gun.

It's actually OK to sell a gun on the internet without a background check, unless the seller "has reason to believe" the propective buyer couldn't pass one. Then it's a felony.

From a Media Release by Mayors Against Illegal Guns:

Here’s what an illegal online gun sale looks like: 

Investigator: “No background checks?”
Seller: “No, I just take cash, and there you go!”
Investigator: “…That’s good because I probably couldn’t pass one of those things.”
Seller: [Laughs]

That’s a real-life exchange between an undercover investigator and the seller of a Ruger assault rifle listed on one of the thousands of websites that offer online classified ads for guns. Worse, it’s a snapshot of illegal guns sales that happen every single day.

The groundbreaking investigation by New York City revealed that a clear majority of online sellers (62%) are willing to commit felonies on this sprawling, unregulated black market for guns.

Here’s where it gets worse. This investigation only targeted 10 websites and found more than 25,000 guns available. But more than 4,000 websites currently list guns for sale. That means there are potentially hundreds of thousands of illegal guns just a click away from whoever wants them.

Here's a video with the phone exchange, and the purchase.