Apr 30, 2007 3:38 pm US/Eastern
Va. Governor Closes Gun Loophole
The Loophole Allowed Va. Tech Shooter To Buy Weapons
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) ―
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4 Seung-Hui Cho chained shut three public entrances to Norris Hall before starting his rampage through the classrooms where he killed 30 students and teachers, police said. (File)
AP
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Va. Gov. Timonthy Kaine says if this loophole was closed earlier, Cho would not have been able to buy a gun in the state. (File)
AP
Virginia's governor on Monday closed the loophole in state law that allowed the Virginia Tech gunman to pass a federal background check and buy the weapons used in the massacre.
Gov. Timothy M. Kaine issued an executive order requiring that a database of people banned from buying guns include anyone who is found to be dangerous and ordered to undergo involuntary mental health treatment.
Seung-Hui Cho had been ordered to undergo psychiatric counseling after a judge ruled that he was a danger to himself.
But because Cho was treated as an outpatient and never committed to a mental health hospital, the court's decision was not entered into the database that gun dealers must check before selling a weapon.
The database "should include any determination that someone is mentally ill and so dangerous to himself or others as to warrant involuntary treatment," Kaine said in a statement.
Cho, a 23-year-old Virginia Tech senior described as a troubled loner, bought his guns legally through gun shops. He gunned down 32 people in a residence hall and a classroom building before killing himself on April 16 in Blacksburg. Experts say he fired more than 170 shots during the rampage.
(© 2007 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Special Coverage: Massacre At Virginia Tech
List And Descriptions Of Va. Tech Victims
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