Colorado gun background checks still surging; called unprecedented

Font ResizeLocal NewsBy Ryan Parker
The Denver Postdenverpost.comPosted: 12/23/2012 11:17:26 AM MSTDecember 23, 2012 6:19 PM GMTUpdated: 12/23/2012 11:17:35 AM MST

In one week, more than 8,800 firearm background checks have been submitted to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation.

As of Sunday morning, approximately 10,000 background checks were in the CBI queue, waiting to be processed, said Susan Medina, spokeswoman for CBI.

"These are unprecedented numbers," she said.

Around 3,000 checks are being submitted a day, Medina said.

The wait time for a background check was at 68 hours Saturday.

This process, required to purchase a gun, usually takes minutes.

On Dec. 15, there were 573 background checks for firearm purchases in the CBI queue, Medina said. Wait times were just over 15 minutes.

The flood of submittals has prompted that department to expand hours of operation from 6 a.m. to midnight, Medina said.

"The goal everyday is to get it down to a zero balance," she said. "They processed 1,600 Saturday."

The background checks began pouring in Dec. 15, one day after the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in Connecticut and on the heels of politicians calling for bans on certain weapons and extended gun magazines.

The bureau is only closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas, otherwise staff, including those from other departments, will be working to process as many checks as possible, Medina said.

In 2012, through November, there were 34,117 more background checks submitted to CBI for processing than in all of 2011, according to CBI data.

Ryan Parker: 303-954-2409, rparker

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