Wayne Welsh, Philip Harris: Criminal Justice Policy and Planning, 4th Edition

Case Studies with Questions and Answers

Chapter 04: Action Planning

Scenario based on Case Study 4–2 (The Brady Act: Why Action Planning is Needed)

Controversies about the Brady Act extended far beyond arguments about the desirability of tougher handgun regulation. Disagreement ensued about who was going to pay to update and automate local criminal records information systems to comply with provisions of the Brady Act. This is a major reason why the National Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP) was created. NCHIP was an excellent example of “action planning.” Without this enabling legislation and funding, problems in gaining state compliance with the new Act could have been insurmountable. Similarly, the Firearm Inquiry Statistics (FIST) Program was needed to monitor implementation of the Act over time.

Questions

  1. Describe at least five categories of people who are prohibited from owning a firearm.

    2. Correct Answer

    Anyone who:

    • is under indictment for, or has been convicted of, a crime punishable by imprisonment for more than one year
    • is a fugitive from justice
    • is an unlawful user of, or is addicted to, any controlled substance
    • has been adjudicated as a mental defective or committed to a mental institution
    • is an illegal alien or has been admitted to the United States under a nonimmigrant visa
    • was discharged from the U.S. Armed Forces under dishonorable conditions
    • has renounced U.S. citizenship
    • is subject to a court order restraining him or her from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner or child
    • has been convicted in any court of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence

  2. How are background checks handled under the permanent provisions of the Brady Act?

    3. Correct Answer

    Presale inquiries are to be made through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). The background check will determine, based on available records, if an individual was prohibited under the Federal Gun Control Act or state law from receiving or possessing firearms.


  3. (a) How are data supplied for the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS)? (b) What problems might exist with these data?

    4. Correct Answer

    (a) Under the FBI’s NICS program, state criminal history records are provided through each state’s central repository and the Inter-state Identification Index. The Index, maintained by the FBI, points instantly to criminal records that states hold. In addition, the FBI provides records of federal offenses, federally maintained state data, and federal data on nonfelony disqualifications. States responding to NICS inquiries for nonfelony prohibitions provide their records directly.
    (b) Problems: many state criminal record systems are notorious for their incomplete and missing data; data on some categories of persons prohibited from owning a firearm (e.g., mentally ill persons; drug addicts) are rarely available in public records.


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