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Published: 12/20/07
New Gun Control Measure Could Prevent Campus Attacks
From "US Passes Tighter Gun Checks Law" BBC News
In reaction to the Virginia Tech attack in April, Congress has approved a measure designed to prevent individuals determined to be mentally disabled by a court from buying a gun. Under current law, individuals deemed mentally unfit by a court are barred from purchasing guns, but privacy laws and budgetary constraints at the state level have prevented most states from passing on relevant information to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, the primary tool used by gun dealers to determine if a buyer is qualified to acquire a firearm. Cho Seung-hui, the Virginia Tech shooter, had been ruled a danger to himself by a judge prior to the attack and was determined to be in need of mental health treatment. But due to concerns over privacy laws, the judge's ruling never made it into federal records, allowing Cho to acquire the guns he used to kill 32 people and himself.

The new measure establishes guidelines for when mental health records should be released to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. It also provides funding to improve the background check system, and provides $375 million a year for five years for states to improve the processing of mental health data, offering financial incentives for compliance and threatening a loss of federal funding for those who fail to comply.

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