In the wake of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Florida, several national firearm retailers, including Dick’s Sporting Goods and Walmart, have made major changes to their sales policies.

While some stores have decided to raise minimum age limits or stop carrying assault-style rifles and high-capacity magazines, most local independent stores are handling business as usual.

“We’re pretty much doing what we’ve always done,” said David Purugganan of Slatington’s A.F. Boyer Hardware and Guns. “It’s just a normal background check, which is an excellent process.”

Boyer’s has been in business for 150 years, and they have no plans to change the age limit for any long gun purchase, Abel Boyer said.

[naviga:iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZGiCNERX9MU" width="560"][/naviga:iframe]

“We’re sticking to the state and federal laws that are put in place by ATF, and we believe that at the age of 18, if you can serve in the military, you are going to be able to buy a long gun,” Boyer said.

Chris Pinghero, owner of The Armory in Kresgeville, said that he has not made any changes, and doesn’t intend to in the near future.

“No, not until it becomes law,” he said.

Dunkelberger’s Sports Outfitter, which has storefronts in Brodheadsville and Stroudsburg, raised the age limit to 21 for anyone purchasing a modern sporting rifle. Owner Jere Dunkelberger said, “It’s strictly a personal decision, I was not influenced by anyone or anything. That’s what I felt, that I was more comfortable with the 21-year age limit.”

Background checks

Both Purugganan and Pinghero put their trust in the background check system in Pennsylvania. Customers looking to buy a firearm are subject to a state-level check through Pennsylvania Instant Check, which includes the federal background check. Any red flags, including domestic violence charges, diagnosis of a severe mental health issue or charges related to controlled substances can bar a customer from getting a gun.

So, while background checks can play a part in firearm safety, the exact value of the checks is undetermined.

A study by the RAND Corp. found evidence for the effect of background checks on mass shootings to be inconclusive. Evidence that background checks may reduce violence crime and total homicides was limited, though studies did provide moderate evidence that dealer background checks reduce firearm homicides.

On some occasions, those background checks are so fast and efficient that they draw an immediate police response. At least four criminals have been arrested while waiting on their background checks at Boyer’s, Purugganan said.

On the rare occasions that the system is down, customers have no choice but to wait.

Even law enforcement officials are subject to the system.

Purugganan once had to tell a police officer that he would have to wait for his gun since his background check was pushed to “research,” where it would take an extra day. The officer in question asked what the wait was for, as he already had a gun, but Purugganan responded that he would not be able to get a gun from him.

“That’s a badge-carrying, cruiser-driving cop. There’s no pass here. No, it’s all by the book,” he said.

Sales

Boyer’s, The Armory and Dunkelberger’s, as well as Ed’s Sport Shop in Tamaqua, sell AR-15 rifles, the weapon used in the Florida shooting.

Pinghero’s shop even sells customized versions of the gun, with numerous options. It’s not the biggest seller for him — handguns are the most common purchase at The Armory — but some other shops are seeing sales spikes for the AR-15.

Dunkelberger also said that AR-15s aren’t flying off the shelves at either one of his stores, though they do sell one every once in a while.

Overall, gun sales have decreased since Donald Trump came into office, as a pro-firearm president and Congress relieve the sense of urgency that often stimulates mass purchases. However, today’s political climate surrounding gun control could turn those figures around, with many firearm proponents fearing a ban on certain guns, such as the AR15.

Ed’s Sport Shop, for example, has seen a sharp sales peak with modern sporting rifles, including the AR-15, recently.

“It hasn’t been a big seller for the last year or so, but since the politicization of the gun control debate, it has been. We’re having a very difficult time keeping them in stock,” owner Brett Hoch said.

The real problem

The issue, Purugganan, Pinghero and Hoch said, isn’t necessarily access to the weapons. While that is certainly part of the puzzle in tragedies such as the Florida shooting, there are numerous factors to consider.

“In Florida, everyone knew the kid was crazy, but no one did anything about it. In a situation like that, it was the system that failed,” Pinghero said, pointing out that police had been dispatched to shooter Nikolas Cruz’s home more than 20 times before the Parkland shooting.

Part of the blame falls upon different parts of government agencies or law enforcement that don’t provide necessary information, such as prior offenses, with the background check systems, Purugganan said. Proper communication may have been able to prevent Cruz from purchasing his weapon, he said.

“The biggest problem is with information sharing. If they don’t put it in the database, it won’t appear on the record. That’s an issue. Unless you’re willing to share all the information that’s there, it won’t work,” he said.

Pinghero said that Pennsylvania’s background check system could have caught someone like Cruz ahead of time, though other state-level checks may not be as comprehensive.

“I think it’s something that definitely involves a lot of factors. At least in Pennsylvania, the way we do things is pretty bulletproof. In other states, like Florida, they may need more help,” he said.

Senators John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Chris Murphy, Democrat, Conn., are sponsoring the “Fix NICS” bill in Congress, which seeks to improve the flow of information from states and federal agencies. While it could help bolster the national background checks, it falls short of a universal background check system, which would include information such as private sales, like those that occur at gun shows. Sens. Pat Toomey, R-Penn., and Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia., attempted to pass a univeral back check bill in 2013, though it failed by a few votes.

All three local retailers supported the right of every responsible person to legally purchase a firearm. The key to prevent a tragedy, they all agreed, was effective teamwork between government entities, schools, law enforcement and more.

While access to an effective background check system and plenty of information are vital parts of the solution for prevention, at the end of the day, Hoch said that it all comes down to action. If no one makes a move to prevent something like this from happening, he said, it will continue to happen.

“This guy in Florida, there was every single warning sign you could think of. The school knew about it, the police knew about it, and the FBI knew about it. It’s beyond ridiculous what happened in Florida. It was a complete failure of local, federal and state government,” Hoch said.