A record number of gun background checks were conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 2015 - about 44 checks every minute and 2,000,000 more than the previous year.
The FBI released its annual report on Monday showing that the bureau conducted 23,141,970 background checks last year, far surpassing the previous record of 21,093,273 set in 2013.
Background checks are conducted through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System each time a gun is purchased through a federally licensed dealer, which is how most sales are made, and when someone applies for a carry permit. The number of checks conducted each year is not directly correlated to the number of firearms sold, because a check does not necessarily equal a sale, sometimes checks are not required, and one person can purchase multiple firearms. Still, the background check data is thought to be the most accurate way of measuring annual gun sales, meaning 2015 was likely a record year for gun sales, according to CNN.
The National Shooting Sports Foundation reviewed the FBI's data and found that 14,244,240 of the checks made in 2015, or about 62 percent, were for firearm purchases, while the rest were for concealed carry permits, reports The Washington Times.
Background checks peaked last year on Black Friday, with 185,345 checks processed within 24 hours, breaking the single-day record. The checks continued to surge through December, with 3.3 million checks conducted in all, making it the highest number of checks the FBI had conducted in a single month since it began in 1998 after the passing of the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, notes The Blaze. That was the same month terrorists fatally shot 14 people in San Bernardino, Calif.
The previous monthly record of 2.8 million checks and the previous single day record came in December 2012, the same month a gunman shot and killed 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.
Gun sales tend to skyrocket following mass shootings because people want to protect themselves from such incidents and also due to fear that stricter gun control measures will soon make it more difficult to buy firearms, explains The Washington Times.
The FBI's data was released the same day President Obama, frustrated by congressional inaction on firearms, met with Attorney General Loretta Lynch and FBI Director James Comey to discuss implementing new gun regulations via executive action. In an attempt to combat a wave of recent shootings, the White House is set to announce a series of measures on Tuesday that would require anyone making a living selling guns to register as a licensed gun dealer and therefore conduct background checks for every sale, according to The New York Times.
The checks are designed to screen potential gun buyers for felony convictions, mental illness, drug use and a history of domestic violence, however, experts say the screenings would not have stopped recent mass shooters from obtaining firearms.
