Background checks spike after CT shooting
Updated: December 23, 2012
"It'll continue until there is nothing left to sell," said John Jackson. He owns Capital City Arms Supply. The gun store has been pretty busy lately, making sales left and right. And with more sales, comes more background checks.
"It checks for criminal history, mental illness, if they've been treated, or institutionalized," he said.
According to a new report, more than 12,500 were done in the five say span following the tragedy. It nearly doubled since the same time last year.
Experts say the spike isn't just because of that, but also because of the latest efforts to ban assault weapons.
"The tragedy that happened, is just that, a sad tragedy. But what's even more sad is the fact that politicians are using that as leverage to push their anti-gun rhetoric and their agenda," said Jackson.
Anti-gun advocates say these weapons are too dangerous, and argue they're meant for military and police, not regular people. But, Jackson sees it differently.
"We've got pretty much the best and most restrictive system in the country. Lets work on enforcing the laws we do have before we start creating new legislation," he said.
Governor Quinn wants an assault weapons ban. He's asked lawmakers to take up the issue when they come back to Springfield in January.
