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More Mentally Ill Barred From Guns

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The Associated Press

Published: November 30, 2007

PARK CITY, Utah - A federal list of mentally ill people barred from buying guns has doubled in size since the Virginia Tech shootings, and U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey encouraged more states Thursday to add information to the database.

In his first policy speech since taking over as attorney general early this month, Mukasey said states have now reported 393,957 mentally ill people to the federal database used to screen the backgrounds of potential gun-buyers. As of last July, three months after the Virginia Tech shootings, states had submitted only 174,863 names to the database. Federal agencies also submit names, but the Justice Department could not immediately say how many.

"Instant background checks are essential to keeping guns out of the wrong hands, while still protecting the privacy of our citizens," Mukasey said.

People are included in the federal database only after courts or other authorities have found them to have mental health problems, Justice Department officials said. Currently, 32 states, including Florida, submit names to the mental health database.

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