The FBI’s December figures show 2.3 million background checks for gun purchasers were conducted in one month alone.
That is an increase of nearly 300,000 from the number of background checks conducted in December 2013.
Breitbart News previously reported that on Black Friday alone there were nearly three background checks conducted every second. A strong December was expected.
CNN Money reports that the 2.3 million background checks for December were considerably higher than the number of background checks for other months in 2014. For example, there were 1.4 million conducted in July and 1.5 million conducted in August. This was topped by 1.6 million in October and 1.8 million in November.
It is important to note that background checks do not correlate perfectly to the number of guns sold. Purchasers can buy numerous guns per each background check. For example, if the 2.3 million persons who underwent background checks bought two guns instead of one, then the number of guns sold by retailers in December was 4.6 million. If they bought three guns, the number of guns sold would have been 6.9 million.
The FBI made this clear in their report: “[The 2.3 million] represents the number of firearm background checks initiated through the NICS. They do not represent the number of firearms sold. Based on varying state laws and purchase scenarios, a one-to-one correlation cannot be made between a firearm background check and a firearm sale.”
On top of the millions of retail sales that took place in December, an untold number of Americans sold guns privately to friends, family members, and acquaintances, as Americans have done since 1791.
Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.