The NRA lawsuit names Attorney General Janet Reno as a defendant. Justice Department spokesman Gregory King said a formal response to the suit will be filed next week. The new system is required under the Brady Law, which established federal background checks for handgun purchasers almost five years ago. As of Monday, people buying rifles and shotguns must submit to instant checks, too. Federal law prohibits the purchase of guns by felons, the mentally ill and people convicted of domestic violence.
States can add other categories.
An estimated 12.4 million firearms are sold each year in the United States. All will be covered by background checks, as will an additional 2.5 million annual transactions in which an owner retrieves a firearm from a pawn shop. The federal system had some technical delays on its first day, but the FBI says that once the process is working smoothly, approvals should take just three minutes. The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report. All Rights Reserved.