History / Overview / Statistics
Brady Bill Dividends for Utah
One of the most important dividends to Utah is the need for the continuation of the Criminal History Improvement Program. As a result of the Brady Bill, a great number of criminal history records have been found to be incomplete. While time is spent researching these records for the purpose of firearms purchases, it is obvious that great emphasis needs to be placed on submitting and maintaining complete, accurate and timely criminal history information in the repository.
Conducting firearms background checks have found that the most common offense listed on the criminal history file is driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI), followed by drug offenses. In addition, most felony arrests are pled down to misdemeanors or dismissed.
Utah’s version of the Brady Bill has been extremely successful. In the first year, over 700 potential buyers were precluded from purchasing handguns due to felony criminal records or warrants. Many outstanding warrants have been cleared up and a number of criminal history records have been revised or amended.