HomeGunsWashington State Gun Sales Have Been Shut Down For 12 Days And...

Washington State Gun Sales Have Been Shut Down For 12 Days And Counting

Published on

Weekly Newsletter

To be updated with all the latest news, offers and special announcements.

In the United States of America, with the Second Amendment protecting our natural right to keep and bear arms, one would think that computer difficulties wouldn’t stop gun sales in an entire state for nearly two weeks.

Alas, one would be wrong.

Since November 1, nobody has been able to legally purchase a firearm in Washington State because of a computer system in the state’s Secure Automated Firearms E-Check (SAFE) system being “compromised.” That’s the program through which Washington conducts its background checks, instead of just going through the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check (NICS) system.

When employees realized the system had been “compromised” on November 1 (they won’t say what that means), rather than figuring out how to fix it or putting some standby system into place, they immediately shut it down, making it impossible for gun dealers to run background checks for purchases. Since private sales are outlawed in the state, that effectively shut down all legal gun buying and selling.

In a Seattle Times report, Wendy Ferrell, associate director for the state Administrative Office of the Courts, said she couldn’t reveal the cause of the “compromise” because of “security reasons.”

“In an abundance of caution, we proactively took down our systems to secure them and are working around the clock with leading experts to restore services as quickly as possible,” Ferrell told the Times

At that time, officials expected the outage to last “at least a week.” However, 12 days later, the system is still offline.

And officials don’t seem to be in much of a hurry to get it back up and running, based on a letter sent to gun dealers last week by Kevin L. Baird,  assistant commander of the State Patrol’s Firearms Background Division.

“What this means to you:  We are effectively on hold with any checks submitted from November 1, 2024, onward until AOC brings their systems back online,” Baird wrote. “Once that happens, the backlog of checks will process through as normal. But, until that time, we cannot make any determinations on any checks. We are currently working through as many pre-November 1 checks as possible, but even those are likely to be delayed due to another AOC system that we check also being down. We will do our best to get as many checks completed before their 10-business day wait period is met (to prevent unnecessary delays to your customers), but there may be some that we are not able to proceed/deny for a few days afterwards.”

That letter prompted leaders of the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the firearm industry trade association, to encourage Washington officials involved with the fiasco to quickly find a remedy. In a letter sent on November 12, NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel Larry Keane asked state officials to quickly change to the NICS system, at least for now.

“ICS operates effectively nationwide, ensuring accurate background check verifications and accommodating safe and responsible firearm transactions,” Keane wrote. “Until the SAFE system is restored, we believe the NICS program is a sufficient alternative to maintain both security and access.”

Keane followed that statement with a warning to Washington officials that a prolonged delay in gun sales would not be tolerated by the organization.

“Please be aware that the inability to conduct lawful transactions may lead to further action, as we seek to protect the rights of our members and their customers,” Keane wrote. “We urge a swift resolution to these technical issues and stand ready to explore additional measures that should be taken to ensure Washingtonians are not unduly burdened in the future.”

The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) has also vowed legal action if the situation isn’t remedied promptly.

“This is simply unacceptable, and we will not tolerate it,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “Washington State citizens have had their rights under the federal and state constitutions suspended, and we will take legal action if this isn’t solved immediately.”

Read the full article here

Latest articles

$15K Off-Road Camper Trailer Entry Point: Introducing the Boreas Ultra-Base

Boreas Campers has unveiled a base model for its line of off-road camper trailers:...

Is a Colorado Lawmaker Planning Bill to Limit Size of Gun Collections?

The gun control lobby has found...

A Guide to REI’s Best Outdoorsy Holiday Gifts

As one of the biggest outdoor retailers, REI carries quality gear for most mainstream...

Of Course Most Parents Don’t Ask About Guns in Others’ Homes

There was a time when the...

Q&A: How an Illinois Legal Case Can Help the Gun Cause in California

Last week’s ruling in in FFL-IL v. Pritzker represented a significant victory...

More like this

Kansas City Area Lawmakers Picking a Fight With Missouri Legislature Over Guns

Some local officials in the Kansas...

RFK Jr. Claims Bill Gates & Anthony Fauci Will Be Arrested Under Trump’s Administration

Commenting Policy: Some comments on this web site are automatically moderated through our Spam protection...

NOT GUILTY: But the Baltimore Legal System Tried in Self-Defense Case

If anyone has any doubts that their defensive actions will...

Memphis Faces Lawsuit After Voters Approve Gun Control Referendum

Last week voters in Memphis overwhelmingly...

CIA Official Arrested Abroad For Leaking Secret Documents On Israeli Military Plans

This article was originally published by Tyler Durden at ZeroHedge. Nearly a month ago highly...

What Matt Gaetz As Attorney General Might Mean for Gun Rights

There have been questions raised about...