Corrections/Police -- Criminal Justice -- The Brady Act Seven-Stage Checklist for Program/Policy Planning and Analysis

The Seven Stage Checklist for Program/Policy Planning and Analysis was employed to examine The Brady Act. In Stage 1, Analyzing the Problem: the problem was found to be at least four serious gaps in the existing Brady Act. Those gaps include: the lack of required background checks for all gun sales, including private sales at gun shows and online; the lack of strong federal law criminalizing gun trafficking; the ready availability of military-style weapons and high-capacity magazines with more than 10 rounds; and the Tiahrt Order passed by Congress and preventing the public from knowing the identities of gun traffickers and how they operate.

Though the Brady Act suffers from several gaps, the lack of required background checks for all gun sales, including private sales at gun shows and online was addressed. Stage 2: Setting Goals and Objectives: The goals statement is the closure of private-sale loopholes by requiring all gun sales, whether in primary or secondary markets, brick-and-mortar or online, be subject to background checks. The outcome objectives are: the key result of plugging the existing gaps in the Brady Act's background check requirements; the target population is all individuals who would properly be disqualified from gun ownership; time frame for measuring the impact and specific criterion for measuring impact would be a yearly assessment of the number of individuals refused gun sales by background checks in so-called "private" sales that are currently exempt from background checks. Stage 3: Designing the Program or Policy: using both policy and strictly enforced program, the program would meld existing background check procedures with very strictly enforced State of California requirements for comprehensive background checks, funneling of all firearm transactions through Federal Firearms Licensed dealers and requirement that every handgun be registered by its owner, plus law enforcement presence and oversight at gun shows, and sting operations. Stage 4: Action Planning: resources needed would include: additional...

borders, a web task force and additional FBI agents to review background checks within the 3-day period. Funding will come from FFL fees, background check fees, gun registration fees, and Congressional mandate. Stage 5: Program/Policy Implementation and Monitoring: the intended target population of firearms sellers and buyers would be reached by consistently monitoring police oversight, background check applications/results and online team's location and termination of gun-selling web sites violating uniform background checks. Gaps and conflicts in implementation and adequate staffing would be defined and periodically corrected. Stage 6: Evaluating Outcomes: major stakeholders would want to know both the impact and continuous outcomes. Our objective of requiring background checks for all firearm sales is quite clearly defined and measurable from the beginning. Whether our system is sufficiently well-designed and well-implemented remains to be seen through monitoring, data collection, feedback from staff/stakeholders and review. Stage 7: Review of Program/Policy: Done. The Seven-Stage Checklist for Program/Policy Planning and Analysis reveals that the Brady Act seriously needs a universal, uniform system of background checks for every firearm sale, whether online or offline, whether by professional arms dealers or "private" vendors.
Stage 1: Analyzing the Problem (Welsh & Harris, 2015, p. 217):

1. Describe the Problem

While the Brady Act has made strides in reduction of gun deaths in the United States, there are still serious gaps in the law. Suicides and homicides by firearm are solidly among the top ten causes of injury deaths in the United States. According to the latest published information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2014 in the United States: suicide by firearm accounted for 21,334 deaths and was the 4th leading cause of injury deaths; and homicide by firearm accounted for 10,945 deaths and was the 6th leading cause of injury deaths (U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, n.d.). Homicide/suicide by firearm are nonfactors in the