Gonzales Gun Show takes extra steps for safe gun sales and trades
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GONZALES- Gun show dealers at the Lamar Dixon Expo Center over the weekend said they are not only trading and selling guns, they say they're taking extra precautions with who they work with.
Hundreds of people showed up to buy and trade guns. Marc Mouton, a gun dealer at the show, said people who plan to walk out with a gun should expect multiple steps to be taken beforehand.
"Everyone who comes in to buy a gun must pass the background check, they have to go through an extensive series of questions, we then take that and run it through the FBI to make sure they're legally able to buy the gun," Mouton said.
As of July 4, anyone 18 and older can carry a concealed gun without a permit, excluding some felons. Mounton said people think gun shows can be used as loopholes to quickly get a firearm with no questions asked.
"We get a lot of people who come here that think they can buy a gun, unbelievable. Louisiana leads the nation in convicted felons who attempt to buy firearms," Mouton said.
Last week in Georgia, 14-year-old Colt Gray used an AR-15 style rifle to kill two students and two teachers at his school. Investigators found that his father bought him the gun as a present.
Mouton said he's encountered schemes of people purchasing for others who are not able to buy it on their own.
"It's called a 'straw purchase.' A lot of dealers here know about it and will decline the whole sale, and if there's any question we'll turn them into the police here," Mouton said.
Phillip Ellis, who teaches concealed carry classes, says that even though it's not required, anyone who purchases a gun should take a class.
"Taking the class makes that person sit down and think about what they're doing, learn the laws about when they can legally shoot. It's a big deal and if you don't have the class you don't know and you're walking on thin ice," Ellis said.