JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Your next trip to the gun show could soon take a lot longer -- that is, if a proposal to a certain amendment passes through Congress.
Under it, background checks would expand to all commercial sales. That includes both gun shows and the Internet.
Eric Friday, lead counsel for Florida Carry, says the idea of background checks are a good thing, but he says the current system isn't a good one and this wouldn't help.
"Universal background checks can only be truly universal if we institute a registration procedure," Friday said. "Otherwise, how would we know whether or not a person had a gun transferred properly through the background check system?"
Under this proposal, federally licensed gun dealers would conduct the checks. They would need to be completed within three days. But at gun shows, they'd have to be completed within two days, for the next four years.
From there, it would drop to 24 hours. In a previously recorded interview, Jacksonville Sheriff John Rutherford said when it comes to senseless violence, the biggest problem is the issue of mental health care.
"Florida spends less on mental health care than any other state in the country," Rutherford said. "What's worse, not only is our state at the bottom of the list, but our district, District 4, is at the bottom of the list for state funding."
The proposed amendment is bound to raise concerns from gun supporters. Channel 4 crime and safety analyst Ken Jefferson says those in the market to purchase a gun who are law-abiding citizens have no reason to worry.
"To say that it's going to stop you from being able to get a weapon, it's not," Jefferson said. "It's just going to legitimize the fact that you are a responsible gun holder."