“With a few days left in December, the FBI report[ed] the number of background checks [had] already topped the previous one-month record — set only in November — of 1,534,414 inquiries by gun dealers to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System also known as NICS,” CNN reported. “Almost half a million checks were done in just the last six days before Christmas. Two days before Christmas, NICS ran 102,222 background checks, which was the second-busiest day in history.”
No one knows for sure how many firearm purchases those NICs represented. “But most people pass the background checks. Only 1.3% of the searches result in people being denied permission to buy a weapon, said FBI spokesman Steve Fischer.”
National Rifle Association (NRA) spokesman Andrew Arulanandam told CNN that self defense appeared to be the top reason why Americans were buying more firearms than ever.
“I think there's an increased realization that when something bad occurs, it's going to be between them and the criminal,” he said.
Source: CNN 12/28/11
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