Virginia’s new universal background check law will stem the flow of gun trafficking along the Iron Pipeline, prevent gun violence in impacted communities, and save countless lives.” The Coalition to Stop Gun Violence is proud to have driven this change and are thrilled to see the most substantial gun violence prevention bills in Virginia’s history become law. Over the past decade, the politics around gun violence prevention have changed. “I began lobbying in Virginia for gun violence prevention policies, like universal background checks, after my daughter was shot and injured and 32 others were murdered in their classrooms at Virginia Tech - 13 years ago. While passing state universal background checks alone will not address the entire problem of inter-state gun trafficking, research has found that it reduces inter-state trafficking by 29%. Fortunately, in 2020, Virginia lawmakers closed the background check loophole by instating a universal background check system, helping to stem the flow of guns trafficked along the Iron Pipeline.
This gun trafficking route, from southern states with weak gun laws like Virginia to northern states along Interstate 95, is known as the Iron Pipeline. Virginia has long been an example, but in 2020, lawmakers took the first steps to successfully close this dangerous loophole.įor years, gun traffickers have exploited Virginia’s weak gun purchasing laws by purchasing guns in bulk and trafficking those guns to states in the Northeast with stronger gun purchasing laws. Guns purchased in states with weak gun laws are often trafficked to states with stronger background check requirements. Virginia: A case example of passing universal background checks as the foundation for preventing gun trafficking Many states have taken steps to close this loophole, but federal law does not require these private sellers or transferors to conduct simple background checks, making the Brady Act easy to thwart. These private sales often take place at gun shows (aka “gun show loophole”) or by buyers and sellers being connected through online gun marketplaces. Persons prohibited from purchasing or possessing firearms can thus avoid federally licensed firearms dealers, and instead choose to buy firearms through unlicensed sellers or dealers (aka “private sales”).
This law excludes individuals who “make occasional sales, exchanges, or purchases of firearms for the enhancement of a personal collection or for a hobby, or who sell all or part of his personal collection of firearms.” 3 The law only applies to guns purchased through federally licensed firearms dealers “engaged in the business” of selling firearms. There is a dangerous loophole in the current background check system.
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