John Curley assumes homicide rates will drop Thursday as gun background checks expand

The gun background check initiative approved by voters in November will take effect on Thursday.

Law enforcement agencies, gun groups and others in Washington state are waiting to see exactly what impact that new, more expansive gun background checks will have.

“I guess we’ll start to see the number of homicides drop precipitously on Friday,” KIRO Radio’s John Curley said sarcastically.

Tom & Curley Show co-host Tom Tangney said that’s not necessarily what people expect to happen, but a majority of people, 59 percent of voters, thought expanding background checks was a good idea.

“It’s common sense, with this kind of control, that it may help society,” he said.

Initiative 594 requires background checks on all sales and transfers, including private transactions and many loans and gifts, with some exceptions.

I-594 proponents argued more background checks can save lives. The voter’s guide stated:

“Criminal background checks reduce access to guns for criminals, domestic abusers and people with severe mental illnesses. But current law only requires background checks for gun sales at licensed dealers. This means that anyone – including dangerous criminals – can purchase guns at gun shows or online with no background check. 594 closes this loophole by requiring all gun sales – including those at gun shows or over the Internet – go through a criminal background check.”

But Curley wonders if the change in law will really mean criminals will behave any differently.

“It’s the reality, criminals don’t care about laws. Laws affect law-abiding citizens,” Curley said. “A lawless person will continue to get a gun and kill people.”

This was also part of the arguments against I-594, as listed in the voter’s guide:

“Criminals will still acquire firearms where they do now: the black market, straw purchasers, theft and illicit sources like drug dealers.”

But Tangney argued you have to consider there could be a case where a potential gun transaction might involve both a criminal and a law-abiding citizen.

“Sometimes there is a law-abiding person and a lawless person, and if we can prevent the lawless person from getting something from a law-abiding person, all the better,” he said.

When the new law takes effect Thursday, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, Washington will join California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, New York, Rhode Island and Washington, D.C., with similar measures.

Other states have varying laws on expansion beyond what federal law requires.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.