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DA Steve Wolfson argues the case for gun background checks

It’s probably not a big surprise to find District Attorney Steve Wolfson in support of extending criminal background checks to all gun sales in Nevada.

After all, he’s met with plenty of crime victims during his tenure, people whose lives were changed forever because of the misuse of a gun. And the recent rise in violent crime has made the issue all the more urgent.

That’s why Wolfson this week endorsed Question 1, a citizen initiative that will mandate all gun buyers undergo a criminal background check, even if the sale is between two private parties. And just like a good prosecutor, Wolfson meticulously builds his case.

First, he says, the initiative doesn’t create new law, it simply extends an existing law that requires background checks in gun stores for every gun transaction, including those conducted by non-gun dealers at gun shows.

“One of the things that makes America’s justice system the envy of the world is that our laws apply to everyone. That’s what Question 1 is about – making sure everyone follows the law that’s already in place and conducts a criminal background check before selling a gun,” Wolfson said in a statement released by Nevadans for Background Checks. “Question 1 closes the loophole in the law and would actually protect law-abiding gun owners from selling a gun to a felon or some other person who is prohibited by law from owning it.”

Not only that, but the U.S. Supreme Court has made clear that no right — not even those in the First Amendment — is absolute, and that all are subject to reasonable restrictions. Congress and states have passed laws curtailing gun rights for certain people, and background checks are necessary to enforce those laws.

After the 2013 Legislature approved a background check bill similar to Question 1, Gov. Brian Sandoval vetoed the measure, writing that background checks constitute an erosion of Nevadans’ Second Amendment rights. That’s just shockingly wrong, especially coming from someone who was once a U.S. District Court judge.

Second, Wolfson notes, background checks work — according to FBI statistics, since 1998 more than 1.3 million people who are prohibited by law from owning firearms have been thwarted when trying to buy a gun legally in the United States. Those denials range from convicted felons, fugitives and domestic abusers to mentally ill people, illegal immigrants and people dishonorably discharged from the U.S. military.

Third, Wolfson says, background checks can literally be a matter of life and death. “I believe that Question 1 will save lives,” he says.

Certainly, even background check supporters have to acknowledge that passing Question 1 will not solve every problem related to guns.

“It’s not an end-all fix,” Wolfson says. But it’s a small, simple and long-overdue step that Nevadans can take to make it more difficult for people who shouldn’t have guns from getting them legally.

Will it stop Strip shooting sprees that claim innocent lives? Will it end the assassination of police officers who are simply having lunch? Will it transform crime-ridden neighborhoods where people have grown all too accustomed to the sound of gunfire? Will it curtail mass shootings in churches or schools? With 300 million guns in America, and no shortage of people willing to do evil, nobody can promise that.

But with background checks proven to be legal, effective and reasonable, Wolfson says Question 1 is something Nevada can and should do to protect itself.

Steve Sebelius is a Review-Journal political columnist and co-host of the show “PoliticsNOW,” airing at 5:30 p.m. Sundays on 8NewsNow. Follow him on Twitter (@SteveSebelius) or reach him at 702-387-5276 or SSebelius@reviewjournal.com.

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