How is a gun retailer supposed to stop straw purchases?
OAKWOOD, Minn. – Gun violence was put in the spotlight recently when Minnesota's attorney general decided to sue a local retailer. He said the company should have known two customers were straw purchasing firearms.
How is a gun retailer supposed to stop straw purchases? What are the red flags? Good Question.
Straw purchasing is when someone buys a gun for another person who isn't legally allowed to own one, such as felons.
Two Minnesotans were recently charged and convicted for committing the crime dozens of times. One of the guns was used in a deadly mass shooting last year in St. Paul.
"It's definitely a concern," said Dave Bean, owner of Get Guns Now, a licensed dealer in Oakwood. "I think we find it a moral obligation to try to, you know, reduce and ideally completely prevent, which is not, you know, really possible but it's kind of our end goal."
There's even a campaign organized by the NSSF and ATF called Don't Lie For the Other Guy, reminding straw purchasers of the potential prison time and encouraging dealers to stop them.
A survey of about 1,600 gun dealers found more than two thirds of them experienced a straw purchase attempt in the previous year. Of that group, 10% said it happened more than once a month. Those statistics didn't surprise Bean.
"I would actually be surprised if the number's not higher," he said. "I probably turn away at least one a month."
When buying a gun, the customer fills out a form ATF 4473 to pass a background check. It includes acknowledging they are the actual buyer. The form is how guns used in crimes can be traced back to the purchaser.
"It's a felony offense to commit a straw purchase," said Bean.
What are some red flags that a buyer could be doing a straw purchase?
"The big one is nervousness," said Bean, adding that the buyer might be timid and moving about the room.
Another involves the customer showing the dealer a picture of the gun they want to buy but having little to no knowledge of the gun. Several dealers mentioned a customer talking or texting on their phone with someone else during the transaction is another warning sign.
Bean said it comes down to trusting his instincts when he feels the need to deny a sale.
"You just politely tell them that you're not comfortable selling that firearm to them," he said.
On the background check form, it states for dealers that, "Any person who transfers a firearm to any person he/she knows or has reasonable cause to believe is prohibited from receiving or possessing a firearm violates the law, even if the transferor/seller has complied with the Federal background check requirements."
"We could get in a lot of trouble if we knowingly are facilitating straw purchases," he said.
If someone buys more than one gun at once, or multiple guns within five days, dealers are required by law to notify the ATF. It helps the agency track potential gun trafficking.
