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Here you go guys.
Ashcroft's Gun Plan
by Ben Romano
Washington Bureau
Washington - Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) yesterday attacked Attorney
General John Ashcroft's move to reduce the amount of time the federal
government keeps records of gun-purchase background checks from 90 days to
one day, saying the decision was made despite objections from the FBI and other
law-enforcement agencies.
Schumer and Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) sent a letter yesterday to
Ashcroft and acting FBI Director Thomas Pickard formally requesting "all
reports, memoranda, and all other documents" related to the decision to destroy
the gun-purchase records, which are used to audit the national system designed
to keep criminals from buying guns.
A second letter from the two senators to Ashcroft posed specific questions about
his decision-making process and its impact on law enforcement's ability to
monitor "gun dealers who are intent on putting weapons in the hands of
criminals." Schumer said sources within the Justice Department told him that
documents, including an internal FBI memo, made clear law enforcement's
objection to destroying the records speedily.
An FBI spokesman would not comment on the existence of such a memo. A
Justice Department spokeswoman said the senators' request had not yet been
received.
Ashcroft has argued that keeping the records for longer than necessary violates
the privacy rights of lawful gun buyers and that auditing of the national criminal
background check system can be done in one day. Schumer and other
gun-control advocates balk at both assertions.
The records are necessary to track abuses of the system, such as "straw
transactions," in which an individual buys guns for others who cannot clear the
background check, Schumer said. Those transactions "look OK until they're
closely examined," but such close examinations would not be possible if the
records were destroyed in one day, he said.
Asked if he would subpoena the requested documents, should Ashcroft fail to
provide them, Schumer said, "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." He
indicated that he was willing to call Ashcroft before his Judiciary subcommittee
to get answers to his questions about the decision-making process.