National Instant Criminal Background

Check System (NICS) Section

FBI Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Division

NICSOperational

Update

Presented by Lisa A. Vincent, NICS Unit Chief for the Appeal and Liaison Services Unit

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NICS STATISTICS FY 2007* Program-to-Date (PTD)*

State Inquiries . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,040,452 40,929,229

Federal Inquiries . . . . . . . . . . . 5,136,883 42,345,756

Total NICS Inquiries . . . . . . . . 11,177,335 83,274,985

NICS Section Immediate Proceeds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,662,435 35,247,348

NICS Section Denials . . . . . . . 66,817 610,180

NICS Section Immediate Determination Rate (IDR) . . 91.58%

* As of 12/31/2007

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NICS Participation

Full POC – Contact State/Territory for All Firearm Background Checks including permitsPartial-POC – Contact State for Handgun & FBI for Long Gun Background ChecksPartial-POC – Contact State for Handgun Permit & FBI for Long Gun Background ChecksNon-POC – Contact FBI for All Firearm Background Checks This texture denotes that the State has at least one ATF-Qualified Alternate Permit. These permits are issued by localor state agencies. Refer to the latest Permanent Brady Permit Chart for specific permit details.Denotes the state has an ATF-Qualified Alternate Permit, but has discontinued issuing new permits.

WA

ORID

NV UT

AZ

CA

AK

HI NM

MEMT

WY

CO

ND

SD

NE

KS

OK

TX

MN

IA

MO

AR

LA

WI

IL

MSAL

TN

KY

IN

MI

OH

GA

FL

SC

NC

VAWV

PA

NY

NHVT

MARICTNJDEMDDC

Puerto Rico

Virgin Islands

Guam

N. Mariana Islands

03/200703/2007

13

35

4

4

19

American Samoa

1

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Criminal History Records (CHR)

The NICS Section proactively seeks record completing information. Asa result of the efforts of the NICS Section’s staff, and as of 12/31/2007:

• Over 37,366 CHRs were updated in 2007.

• Over 630,345 CHRs were updated PTD.

• Over 14,688 dispositions were forwarded to the states for maintenance at the state level in 2007. Since 2004, over 59,342 records have been forwarded to the states.

• On 09/12-13/2007, the second annual Report, Educate and Associate Criminal Histories Conference was hosted at the CJIS Division. Participation included the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) and representatives from Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Kansas, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Tennessee, and Wisconsin.

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NICS Outreach Efforts

• 4/04-05/2007, the NICS Section attended the Law Enforcement Exposition in New York.

• 7/11-12/2007, the NICS Section attended the Law Enforcement Exposition in Ohio.

• 10/01-05/2007: The NICS Section attended and participated in the Court Technology Conference in Tampa, Florida. As newcomers to this information- sharing forum, the NICS Section networked with court professionals from around the world regarding common interests such as training, communications, etc. Additionally, the NICS Section promoted Web cast training modules (which will be availed to judges, law enforcement officials, etc.) developed with the assistance of the BJS.

• Since the POC Support Team’s inception in 2003, it has held over 200 training events and trained over 5,600 individuals. These training events have occurred in states including Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Hawaii, Maryland, Texas, Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Michigan, North Dakota, Arizona, Montana, and Illinois.

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Misdemeanor Crimes of Domestic Violence (MCDV) and Processing Background Checks

• The NICS, with direction/guidance from the U. S. Department of Justice, implemented a change in the processing of possible MCDVs to more closely adhere to the Gun Control Act of 1968 (GCA).

• The processing change applies to the element of “physical force” and the use of records of conviction and/or transcripts to prove the element as a contributing factor.

• Because of the potential for state law to reflect disjunctive elements, it is possible that MCDVs predicated on information such as contained in police reports would not qualify as an MCDV (conviction) under the GCA unless specific documentation (e.g., court transcripts) establishes such.

• The NICS Section implemented the aforementioned on 10/01/2007.

• The states are working towards compliance.

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NICS Index

• As of 1/1/2008, there were 5,108,039 federally prohibiting recordsmaintained in the NICS Index. Of these records, 518,499 entries are based on mental health information.

• The NICS Section continues to avidly promote the sharing of information with federal and state agencies specific to the benefits of submitting immediately disqualifying record information to the nationally-held NICS Index.

• The FBI also contributes records to the NICS Index (e.g., discovered whenprocessing transactions or via individual submission to the FBI). As of 1/1/2008, approximately 46,092 records had been entered into the NICSIndex by the NICS Section employees.

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Discharge

* As of 12/31/2007

Illegal/Unlawful Aliens

75.39%

Denied Persons 13.89%

Mental Defective

10.16%

Dishonorable

0.30%Citizenship Renounced

0.25%

Controlled Substance

Abuse0.01%

Active Records in the NICS Index

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NICS Index State Participation

As of 12/31/2007

DC

NE

NYWI

IN

NH

MD CA

NV IL

OR

TN

PA CT

ID

MT

WY

ND

SD

NM

KS

TX

AROK

MNMN

OHWV

MS AL

KY

SC

MO

ME

MA

DE

RI

AZ

NC UT

FL

NJ

LA

VTWA

MI

COVA

IA

GA

ME

HI

Guam

N. Mariana Islands

American Samoa

Participating StatesNon-participating States

AK

Puerto Rico

U.S. Virgin Islands

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NICS Index – Mental Health InformationSubmission Participation

As of 12/31/2007

Contribute Mental Health InformationContribute Mental Health Information (less than 100 Submissions)Contribute Mental Health Information to the Denied Persons File OnlyContribute Mental Health Information to both the Mental Defective File and the Denied Persons File

WA

OR ID

NV UT

AZ

CA

AK

HI

MEMT

WY

CO

ND

SD

NE

KS

OK

TX

MN

IA

MO

AR

LA

WI

IL

MS AL

TNKY

IN

MI

OH

GA

FL

SCNC

VAWV

PA

NY

NHVT

MARICTNJDEMDDC

Puerto Rico

Virgin IslandsGuam

N. Mariana Islands

1512

American Samoa

NM

42

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NICS Index Growth Total Growth in all Categories

As of 12/31/2007

938,002

1,035,870

1,043,667

1,114,072

2,876,192

3,373,292

3,643,712

3,938,257

4,116,105

5,108,039

0 1,000,000

2,000,000

3,000,000

4,000,000

5,000,000

6,000,000

Number of Records

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

12As of 12/31/2007

NICS Index GrowthMental Health Information

21

88,939

89,591

89,596

142,651

209,835

222,145

233,767

298,571

518,499

0 100,000 200,000 300,000 400,000 500,000 600,000

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

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Out-of-State Denials Based on StateSubmissions to the NICS Index

* As of 12/31/2007

The following is evidence that prohibited persons do cross state lines in attempts to purchase firearms.*

050

100150200250300350400450500550600650700750800

FL MI NH UT VT VA WA

[710] [109] [62] [64] [245] [502] [62]

Note: The aforementioned represents a sampling of states and is not all inclusive.

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The NICS Index Continues to Grow

• California submitted approximately 203,103 submissions to the NICS Index Mental Defective File as of 12/31/2007.

• In 2007, the state of Ohio began submitting information to the NICS Index Mental Defective File. Approximately 7,845 records currently maintained in the NICS Index were submitted by Ohio officials.

• In 2007, the state of Kansas began submitting information to the NICS Index Mental Defective File. Approximately 2,308 records currently maintained in the NICS Index were submitted by Kansas officials.

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NICS Contact Information

FBI Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Division National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) Section

1000 Custer Hollow RoadClarksburg, WV 26306E-mail: a_nics@leo.gov

NICS Customer Service: 1-877-444-NICS (6427)

NICS Section Chief: Bobby P. Hamil, Jr.(304) 625-3500

NICS Unit Chiefs

Monica D. Snider Joey L. Hixenbaugh

(304) 625-7331 (304) 625-7333

Lisa A. Vincent Gary A. Wick(304) 625-7332 (304) 625-7334

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NICS Operational Update

Questions?