Gun Owners Who Are Disqualified Under State Law Can Now Be Charged With 'Trafficking in Firearms'

In my column this week, I note that the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which was hailed as victory for "common sense" gun control when it was approved last month, increased the penalties for illegal possession of firearms. The law raised the maximum sentence for people with felony records from 10 to 15 years and created a new "trafficking in firearms" offense, also punishable by up to 15 years in prison, that is defined broadly enough to include receipt of a firearm by someone who is legally disqualified from owning one. Those provisions affect...