Amid a grim milestone of more than 470 mass shootings in the United States, resulting in a devastating loss of lives, President Joe Biden took decisive action on Thursday to crack down on arms dealers operating without valid licenses. These dealers have exploited legal loopholes, allowing them to circumvent essential buyer screening measures.
The newly unveiled rules also cast a tighter net around firearm collectors engaged in buying and selling guns, as well as addressing the issue of failed gun dealers liquidating their inventories.
These comprehensive regulations have been released by the Justice Department and are a direct response to the Safer Communities Act, championed by President Biden and passed by Congress in June 2022. This legislation was crafted in the wake of a disturbing surge in shooting deaths, particularly in the context of mass shootings, that have plagued the nation.
The Justice Department’s primary objective is clear: compel a broader spectrum of firearms sellers to conduct thorough background checks on potential buyers through a national database. This initiative aims to screen out individuals with criminal records or other disqualifications from gun ownership.
As defined by the Gun Violence Archive, a mass shooting is characterized by an incident in which four or more individuals are either injured or tragically killed.
