Minnestoa Has a Background Check Problem

[tay]

Which leads one to wonder how many other states have the same issues..............


Man who killed his mom with a shotgun in '95 obtains gun permit, buys 13 guns, including an AK-47 and a Tommy Gun


The Oberender case exposes loopholes in national gun laws and Minnesota's background checks.


In Minnesota, a person seeking a permit to purchase an assault weapon or pistol must submit an application to the local police or sheriff's department. There, the background check process begins with a query of the BCA's system. If no disqualifications show up -- such as a violent criminal record or mental illness commitment -- the permit is granted.

No state permit is required to purchase a long rifle or a shotgun in Minnesota. Buyers going to a licensed retailer must pass a federal background check at the counter -- but those records can also be incomplete because they are supplied to the FBI by state agencies.


Minnesota's gun laws don't require an applicant to provide a fingerprint or a Social Security number to verify identity.

Martens said Oberender's case highlights the reluctance of lawmakers to tighten gun laws because they fear being accused of infringing on individual rights. "Public schoolteachers have to go through a complete background check, even including a fingerprint,''

Additionally, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) has more than 168,000 "suspense files'' -- records on Minnesotans who have been arrested since 1990 but whose files are so incomplete that the state can't determine if they should have the right to buy guns.

more


Murderous 'monster' acquires an arsenal | StarTribune.com

 

[The Old Medic]

A person that has been arrested, but never convicted of a felony, does not lose their right to purchase or possess firearms anywhere in the USA.

Believe it or not, an arrest is NOT the same thing as a Conviction!

 

[gerryh]

A person that has been arrested, but never convicted of a felony, does not lose their right to purchase or possess firearms anywhere in the USA.

Believe it or not, an arrest is NOT the same thing as a Conviction!

Hey dummy, I guess you didn't read the article eh.....

Even though Oberender killed his mother with a firearm, even though he was committed to the state hospital in St. Peter as mentally ill and dangerous more than a decade ago, he was able to obtain a permit to purchase firearms last May. That piece of paper gave Oberender, now 32, the ability to walk into any licensed Minnesota retailer and buy any assault weapon or pistol on the rack.


Dozens of other Minnesotans judged by a court to be mentally ill have also found that designation no barrier to obtaining deadly weapons.




Having been committed is supposed to be enough to stop the process.

 

[tay]

A person that has been arrested, but never convicted of a felony, does not lose their right to purchase or possess firearms anywhere in the USA.

Believe it or not, an arrest is NOT the same thing as a Conviction!

Yes and the article agrees with you. They are questioning how people who have been convicted can buy a gun

 

[gerryh]

Yes and the article agrees with you. They are questioning how people who have been convicted can buy a gun

actually, they are questioning how someone that has been committed is able to buy weapons. The man was committed to a mental institute. So, in all probability he was found not guilty by reason of mental defect.

 

[Sal]

A Star Tribune review of state court records found case after case in which individuals deemed mentally ill in judicial proceedings later wound up in possession of guns and accused of violent crimes.

Lovely

They are in big trouble. What a mess.

How does one even begin to deal with this?

 

[gerryh]

Lovely

They are in big trouble. What a mess.

How does one even begin to deal with this?

rofl..... haven't you heard Sal? What happened in Min is not possible. They have all these checks and balances so that only the good people can buy guns legally. If some nut case has a weapon then they got it through illegal means. So, obviously, this whole article is bullshyte and a lie.

 

[Sal]

rofl..... haven't you heard Sal? What happened in Min is not possible. They have all these checks and balances so that only the good people can buy guns legally. If some nut case has a weapon then they got it through illegal means. So, obviously, this whole article is bullshyte and a lie.

Yes, that's what I was thinking.

Sooooooooooooo they must have found buddy via his Facebook display right?

Now, 18 years later, Carver County Sheriff Jim Olson was sending his deputies back to the home where Oberender still lives. Just two days earlier, Olson had scanned the day's shift reports and froze when he tripped over Oberender's name. A scan of a Facebook page then showed firearms spread out like a child's trophies on a bed inside the home, along with notes about the Newtown, Conn., gunman who shot 20 children to death.

They aren't clear on how they found out about his cache.

 

[damngrumpy]

If someone had mental issues it should in fact determine whether a gun permit would
be issued one would think. Even if it were a decade ago or more. And just because
someone was arrested doe not mean they were convicted or even guilty of something.
This is an example of how complicated this could get setting up a registry.
court challenges, and mistakes and people trying to error on the side of caution. Is a
registry going to be based on objectivity or subjectivity or both. And how much will it
ultimately cost? We live in interesting times right.