GUN DEALERS SAY NO TO CLINTON PLAN; PROPOSED BACKGROUND CHECK BLASTED

Gun dealers and collectors from Southeast Missouri say that adding yet another background check before permitting a purchase at a gun show isn't necessary.

President Clinton requested legislation Saturday that could require background checks on all firearms buyers at gun shows. He said gun shows have become "cash-and-carry convenience stores" for people who buy and sell weapons.

But area gun dealers say that isn't true. They are already completing background checks, so Clinton's proposal would just be redundant, and another invasion of privacy.

The Brady law requires that every gun purchase be made only after a federal background check is completed.

The law was originally designed to keep felons from owning handguns and has since expanded to long guns.

"It's the same as what we're doing here," said Lynn Tinnin of the current background check system.

Brad Moore said there are already laws on the books that cover background checks. Moore is a promoter for the SEMO Gun Show, which continues today at the A.C. Brase Arena Building.

Tinnin, a gun dealer from Poplar Bluff, said he is already doing background checks on potential customers according to the Brady law. And he can't make a sale without doing so.

The National Instant Check System (NICS) checks follow a simple procedure. A retailer completes the paperwork, which requires information from a gun permit, makes a call to the NICS toll-free line, waits for approval and then completes the sale.

But Clinton wants to expand the 1994 Brady bill to include checks on unlicensed collectors and private hobbyists. The bills expanded last November and replaced a five-day waiting period.

Expanding the Brady law further would hinder individuals from trading or selling guns privately, dealers say. Under Clinton's proposal two people who happened to meet at a gun show and decided to trade rifles wouldn't be allowed to do so without background checks.

One gun dealer, who wouldn't give his name, said an added check would likely create a greater black market for people who trade and sell guns individually.

"It's like everything else, if you want it you can get it," he said. "If you regulate it enough, it gets to the point where you create a black market."

"It's like Prohibition. You are dealing with human nature and the first thing they want is the first thing you tell them they can't have."

Adding private collectors to the list of people who must have background checks only makes things more restrictive. It doesn't necessarily keep the guns from the criminals, area gun dealers say.

Clinton called for the legislation after recommendations from the Treasury and Justice departments, which jointly surveyed more than 300 recent ATF investigations involving 54,000 firearms linked somehow to gun shows.

Half of the show-related investigations involved felons buying or selling firearms, and in one-third of the investigations, the guns were used in subsequent crimes.

"It shows conclusively that gun shows are a forum for gun traffickers, a cash-and-carry convenience store for weapons used to maim and kill," Clinton said.

But owning or carrying a gun doesn't mean every person intends to do harm with the weapon and a background check won't stop those who do, said Wayne R. LaPierre Jr, chief executive officer for the National Rifle Association.

"It's hollow and it means nothing to the felons on the streets. This is an attempt to put the federal government on the backs of more people."

The NRA is opposed to further restrictions on gun owners. In Missouri, area chapters are pushing for passage of a right-to-carry ballot issue to be considered in the April election.

If passed, the bill would allow people to carry a concealed firearm if they receive a permit from the local sheriff's department and complete a training course.

"We are one of the few states without that provision," said Phil Davis, a member of the Friends of the NRA committee and a gun safety instructor.

Supporters say that the proposed legislation would help to reduce crime rates in the state. "Surveys said that crime drops. Texas just passed it last year and what they said would happen has not happened," Davis said. "There hasn't been an increase in accidents and they haven't had any problems."

-- The Associated Press contributed to this story.