Straw purchase
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A straw purchase is a situation in which a buyer uses an intermediary (a "straw purchaser") through which to acquire one or more firearms from a licensed firearms dealer. The purpose is to hide the identity of the true purchaser or ultimate possessor of the firearm(s). Straw purchases and theft are common ways that prohibited people, such as convicted felons, obtain firearms.
In the United States, straw purchases are a felony violation of the Gun Control Act of 1968 for both the straw purchaser (who can also be charged with lying on Federal Form 4473) and the ultimate possessor.
Many gun shops have jointly participated in programs to deter such purchases.
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[edit] Signs of a straw purchaser
- The customer seems preoccupied as if he or she is trying to remember something they were supposed to get.
- The customer seems ignorant about firearms and has no real desire to learn about them, yet still wants to buy one.
- The customer comes into the store, notes the cheapest guns and then comes back with money.
- The customer attempts to buy multiple handguns that cost less than $200 each.
- The customer walks in with somebody who directs them on what to buy for them.
- The customer says that he's actually buying the guns for someone else, underage.
If the shopkeeper notices any of these signs, he or she has the right to refuse the sale regardless of the results of the NICS background check.
[edit] Famous straw purchases
- Robyn Anderson for Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, perpetrators of the Columbine High School massacre.
- Noted anti-gun activist Sarah Brady, founder of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence (formerly known as Handgun Control, Inc.), purchased a Remington .30-06 rifle with a scope and safety lock at a Lewes, Delaware gun shop, for her son, James Brady, Jr., "as a Christmas present" in 2000. According to Delaware Justice Department spokeswoman Lori Sitler, this purchase was a "straw purchase". Brady confessed to this in her book, A Good Fight. There is no claim that Brady violated the federal "straw purchase" law as she was the actual purchaser. Under Delaware law, a "straw purchase" occurs only if the ultimate recipient is "not qualified to legally purchase, own or possess a firearm in this State." There has been no evidence, much less a legal determination that Brady's son was such a prohibited person.
[edit] Straw purchase in other contexts
A straw purchase can also be defined as any purchase, where the purchaser is knowingly purchasing an item or service for someone who is not able to complete such a transaction. In the realm of a car purchase, a straw purchase is prevalent as well. If a certain individual does not have the appropriate credit to purchase an automobile, based on his or her credit alone, he or she may solicit a friend or relative to purchase the automobile for the use of another. As it is legal to purchase a vehicle for personal use, if one was to purchase a vehicle under the guise of personal use, and to turn the use of the vehicle in a full-time capacity to another, this is also considered an example of a straw purchase.
A straw purchase can also connote a purchase dealing with a wide range of dealings; including but not limited to: housing, tobacco, alcohol, prostitution, drugs, firearms, automobiles and dealings with credit, such as loans and credit cards.
If intent can be proven, this action is illegal and punishable according to state and federal law.
