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U.S. NEWS Tuesday 2 July 2019

Glitches snarl start of California's ammo background checks

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) seemed a little bit per-
— California's new ammu- turbed. ... There's a lot of
nition background check people feel like they're be-
law began Monday not ing held hostage suddenly
with a bang but with a — punishing the people
whimper from dealers who who've been doing it the
reported delays and glitch- right way."
es with the state's online He was reading through
system. dozens of pages online as
But they said few custom- he tried to log in, but he
ers were affected because groused that "it would take
most had stockpiled bul- a Philadelphia lawyer to
lets or shotgun shells in the figure it out."
weeks before the new law Officials with the state De-
took effect. partment of Justice, which
Voters in 2016 approved administers the program,
requiring criminal back- did not respond to repeat-
ground checks for every ed telephone and email
ammunition purchase. But requests for comment. The
the state's latest attempt department said in a news
to deter gun violence only release that it had sent
took effect Monday. vendors regulations and
Vendors the length of Cali- instructions on how to com-
fornia were frustrated by ply.
online snags including their "The eligibility checks en-
inability to readily log in to sure purchasers are not
the new system that is sup- prohibited from owning or
posed to let them back- possessing ammunition due In this photo taken Tuesday, June 11, 2019, Chris Puehse, owner of Foothill Ammo displays a .45
ground-check customers to a felony and/or violent caliber bullet for sell at his store in Shingle Springs, Calif.
with the state, though some misdemeanor conviction or Associated Press
put it down to a predicable warrant, domestic violence
learning curve. restraining order, or mental access it," said Steve Con- "I can't believe the amount tion just to see if it could be
Chuck Michel, an attorney health issue," the depart- verse, a longtime clerk at of paper it wastes," he said. done.
for the National Rifle Asso- ment said. Ade's Gun Shop in Orange, "This one transaction for "Confusing," said store
ciation and the affiliated The state system is sup- 30 miles southeast of Los two types of ammo was al- owner Scott Bodkin. "Just
California Rifle & Pistol As- posed to crosscheck one Angeles. most eight pages long." a learning curve. We'll get
sociation, said he will soon database of people who Scott Emmett, the manag- Andrew Hackett, manag- through it."
cite the glitches in seeking already cleared back- er of the Ammo Bros store er of Nice Shot, an indoor Scott Dipman, vice presi-
an injunction to block the ground checks when they in San Diego, said the sys- shooting range in Redding, dent at Coyote Point Ar-
law. The California affiliate bought guns in California tem was down for the first 160 miles north of Sac- mory in Burlingame, 16
sued last year, maintaining with a second database 45 minutes. ramento, said he would miles south of San Francis-
that the new law violates of those who bought guns "I sat on the phone for have to turn away custom- co, was frustrated with the
the Second Amendment legally but are no longer about 40 minutes and no ers because he'd had no online ammunition report-
right to bear arms, impedes allowed to own them. The one answered" at the De- guidance on how to log ing forms.
interstate commerce and process should take about partment of Justice, he said into the state system. Cus- "I have thousands of items
is pre-empted by federal two minutes, the depart- after hanging up in frustra- tomers are allowed to buy that I'm going to have to
law. ment said Monday. tion. ammunition to shoot at manually type into the sys-
"I've had one customer, Customers pay $1 for the Emmett had a single cus- his range — they just can't tem," he said. "There's a
and I had to turn them check. Those who pass get tomer by midmorning take any home without a learning curve for us to fig-
away because I couldn't their ammo after clerks re- whose transaction took background check. ure out what that the new
get into the system," Don cord the brand, type and about 10 minutes instead of One of the clerks at OC procedure is, and unfortu-
Reed, owner of DGS Ammo amount of ammunition. the couple minutes it would Guns in Lake Forest, 45 miles nately the state didn't give
& Airguns in Sacramento, "So far it doesn't work at all. previously have taken to southeast of Los Angeles, us any peek into what was
said at midmorning. "He My system doesn't let me run a credit card. bought a box of ammuni- going on."q