Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
How to Buy a Glock If You Flunk a Background Check
By
John Del Signore
Published Jan 31, 2011
Modified Jan 31, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
John Del Signore
Published Jan 31, 2011
Modified Jan 31, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The guv'ment's tyrannical background checks stopping you from exercising your Second Amendment right to carry a semiautomatic handgun that can squeeze off 33 rounds in seven seconds or less? Just come on down to the Crossroads of the West Gun Show in Phoenix, Arizona, where undercover investigators working with Mayor Bloomberg's administration had no problem buying Glocks like the kind used by Jared Loughner in the Tuscon massacre. All you need to do is show some I.D. to exploit what some lawmakers call the "gun show loophole." In fact, one investigator was able to pay cash for a 9 mm semiautomatic even after telling the seller he probably wouldn't pass a background check. Instead of refusing the sale, as required by federal law, the gun peddler pockets the $500 and directs his shady customer toward the tent with the cheap ammunition. Watch:
City Hall says gun shows are linked to 30% of guns in federal gun trafficking investigations. Mayor Bloomberg announced the results of the investigation today, and said in a statement, "We have demonstrated how easy it is for anyone to buy a semiautomatic handgun and a high capacity magazine, no questions asked. This country must take two simple steps to stop more of the 34 murders that occur with guns every day: make every gun sale subject to a background check, and make sure the background check system has all the required records in it. Congress should act now, but gun show operators shouldn't wait."
After a similar gun show investigation in 2009, four of the seven gun shows targeted by Bloomberg each signed agreements with the City of New York agreeing to end no-background check gun sales. Of course, Tuscon shooter Jared Loughner bought his Glock from a Sportsman's Warehouse after passing the FBI's background check "immediately and without incident."
Tagged
glock
gun show investigation
mayors against illegal guns
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Queens man found dead, police say, and injured woman is his mother, neighbors say
Police are investigating a related incident in which a 62-year-old woman was found injured beneath the Van Wyck Expressway.
By
Charles Lane
Published Oct 14, 2026 at 7:39 p.m. ET
Man shot by ICE in NYC's Marble Hill said federal officers never identified themselves
The wounded man said he didn't learn ICE agents were involved until he woke up in the hospital.
By
Arya Sundaram
and
Samantha Max
News
Man shot by ICE in NYC's Marble Hill said federal officers never identified themselves
The wounded man said he didn't learn ICE agents were involved until he woke up in the hospital.
By
Arya Sundaram
and
Samantha Max
Brooklyn school dean says MTA officers assaulted him over a $3 bus fare he says he paid
By
Carol Chen
National Grid customers in NYC will see higher gas bills this winter
By
Rosemary Misdary
Bruce Blakeman joins Gov. Hochul in support for expanding NY rape law
By
Jon Campbell
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .