Tens of thousands of people wanted by law enforcement officials have been removed this year from the FBI criminal background check database that prohibits fugitives from justice from buying guns. Since the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) was created in 1998, the background check system has prevented 1.5 million people from buying guns, including 180,000 denials to people who were fugitives from justice, according to government statistics. The FBI, which runs the criminal background check database, had a broad definition and said that anyone with an outstanding arrest warrant was prohibited from buying a gun. The office said that gun purchases could be denied only to fugitives who cross state lines. Before the FBI memo, there were about 500,000 people identified as fugitives from justice in the database — and all of those names were removed.

Source: Washington Post November 22, 2017 21:50 UTC