From: Thomas A Chandler, [EMAIL PROTECTED] ASSOCIATED PRESS Group Offers New Gun Control Effort by JENNIFER LOVEN Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) -- Two Cabinet members lent support Tuesday to a private effort intended to recruit college students for a gun-control campaign. ''We are still one of the most violent nations in the world,'' Attorney General Janet Reno told Tuesday's audience of about 400, most of them students interning for the summer at Washington's many advocacy groups, law firms, and government offices. ''But that does not have to be. ... We can do something about it, but we have got to wake up America.'' Reno called gun violence an epidemic, saying that 29,829 people died from gun-related injuries in 1998 -- or 82 deaths a day -- despite dramatic reductions in violent crime in recent years. The ''First Monday 2000'' campaign hopes to build on enthusiasm created by the Million Mom March in May and inspire students from law, nursing, social work and medical schools to organize events for Oct. 2, the day the Supreme Court begins its next term. The Alliance for Justice, which is organizing the effort, envisions hundreds of simultaneous rallies, town hall meetings and door-to-door campaigns across the country that day. ''We intend to launch a mobilization so massive that politicians cannot ignore us,'' said Alliance President Nan Aron. A coalition of advocacy groups perhaps best known for monitoring federal judicial nominations, the alliance has held ''First Monday'' events since 1994, focusing on a different social justice issue each year. They are joined this year by Physicians for Social Responsibility, the National Education Association, Handgun Control, the American Bar Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics, among others. Housing Secretary Andrew Cuomo urged the students to counter the strength of anti-gun control forces with their own political involvement. ''We are not going to get beat because they were better at getting their voices heard,'' Cuomo said. ''It's up to you. Make it happen.'' Also addressing the crowd were several of Congress' leading gun-control advocates, including Democratic Reps. Bobby Rush of Illinois and Carolyn McCarthy of New York, who both have lost family members to gun violence. Meanwhile, a federal appeals court affirmed a lower court's dismissal of an attempt by the National Rifle Association to force Attorney General Janet Reno to immediately destroy personal information relating to legal firearm transactions. The NRA argued that the Brady Act requires the immediate elimination of the data, though the court agreed with Reno that nothing in the act bars the Department of Justice from holding the information for up to six months for background check system audits. ___________________________ Appeals Court Rules FBI Can Keep Gun Records E-Mail This Article Printer-Friendly Version By Bill Miller Washington Post Staff Writer Wednesday, July 12, 2000; Page A21 A federal appeals court ruled yesterday that the FBI can hold on to gun purchase records for six months to ensure that a federal computer system that conducts millions of instant criminal background checks is working properly. The 2 to 1 ruling was a defeat for the National Rifle Association, which argued that the practice amounted to an "illegal national registration of gun owners." The NRA contended that the law requires the FBI to destroy records of approved purchases immediately. The instant background checks of potential gun purchasers began in November 1998, fulfilling requirements under the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act and putting an end to checks conducted under a five-day federal waiting period. Gun dealers are required to submit information about prospective buyers to the computer system in an effort to prevent sales to convicted felons, fugitives and other disqualified buyers. The information includes the customer's name, sex, race, date of birth and state of residence. The computer is supposed to immediately generate a response for gun dealers that approves, rejects or postpones the sale for further investigation. Since the system was put into place, roughly 14 million checks have been performed, Justice Department officials said. About 280,000 purchases have been rejected. The NRA filed suit to challenge a Justice Department regulation that allows the FBI to keep all purchase records for six months for auditing purposes only. The Justice Department contended that it needs the time to spot-check results for quality control, ensure that gun buyers and dealers are not using false identities or other means to thwart the system and determine that the huge database is not being used by anyone to gain confidential information for unauthorized purposes. While the NRA did not object to preserving--indefinitely--the records of buyers who are rejected, it argued that the FBI was required to immediately destroy personal data about those who were approved. The NRA's lawyers pointed to language in the Brady law that called for officials to "destroy" records of approved transactions. The law also warned against using the checks "to establish any system for the registration of firearms." U.S. District Judge James Robertson dismissed the NRA's lawsuit last year, concluding that the Justice Department acted reasonably in establishing auditing standards. The NRA asked the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn Robertson's ruling. Appellate Judges David S. Tatel and Merrick B. Garland, both Clinton appointees, rejected the NRA's argument. David B. Sentelle, a Reagan appointee, dissented. Tatel wrote that the "audit log" is not a firearms registry. The Brady law contained no timetable for purging records, he said, adding that common sense indicates that Congress wanted to ensure that the system functions properly. Sentelle wrote that the law's instruction to destroy records meant exactly that, prohibiting even temporary preservation. The NRA was among the strongest supporters of instant background checks. James Baker, the NRA's chief lobbyist, said the organization may seek further appellate review. "When you have words in the law like 'destroy,' 'don't record' and 'no system of registration,' it seems fairly obvious to us," Baker said. Attorney General Janet Reno called the ruling "a win for the safety of all Americans," saying it "will allow us to continue to conduct audits that protect individual privacy, ensure system accuracy and deter fraud by corrupt gun dealers." -- They really want to get gun owners to vote for Bush, don't they? Steve. Cybershooters website: http://www.cybershooters.org List admin: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ___________________________________________________________ T O P I C A The Email You Want. http://www.topica.com/t/16 Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Your Favorite Topics
