Brady Bill is still responsible of preventing over 310,000 felons, fugitives, and other prohibited people from getting handguns(12). In 1996 the federal government received over two million applications to check the backgrounds of people wanting to purchase and possess a handgun, and out of that two million plus people seventy thousand people were rejected. Three states out the twenty-three that still are using the Brady Bill, Arkansas, Texas, and Pennsylvania have all seen decreases in crimes committed with a handgun as well. In Arkansas under the Brady Bill 125 people were denied handgun purchases in 1994 down from because they were found to either be a felon, fugitive, or have had mental problems. In the state of Pennsylvania 486 people were denied handguns in 1994 because they were found not able to possess a handgun. And in Texas there were 1107 people denied in the same year as the other states. All these numbers of handgun purchase denials are up from years before the Brady Bill was enacted (Dobrin). Despite the effectiveness of the Brady Bill it had a short-lived life because in 1997 Sheriff Jay Pintz took the Brady Bill to the Supreme Court to have it over turned on the grounds of Constitutionality. The two states involved in the suit against the United States Government are Montana and Arizona. These two states claim that the Brady Bill violates the 10th Amendment. The amendment says that the federal government cannot force the state or local governments to carry out federal law. This split the Supreme Court Justices, because on one hand this Bill is for the good and safety of the American citizens and on the other hand the federal government is not paying or funding the states in anyway to help them with the checks. Even with the Brady Bill being shot down for its Constitutionality and all the criticisms towards the bill from the states and pro- gun advocates it is still one of the most effective ways that the Un...
