The Department of Defense has added thousands of former military members who were dishonorably discharged to the list of those who are not permitted to own firearms.
The move came after the Sutherland Springs mass shooting where 26 people were killed at First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, KSAT reported. The gunman had been granted a bad-conduct discharge after he assaulted his wife. Air Force officials eventually admitted they did not submit the gunman's records to the FBI background check, CNN reported.
Now, the Department of Defense is trying to make sure that all branches of the military are complying with orders to submit the records of those who are not legally allowed to own guns after being kicked out of service.
Since a move to clear a backlog of reports, the FBI is reporting that there are an additional 4,284 names of former military members dishonorably discharged, who are also not permitted to own handguns, on the list. CNN reported it was a 38 percent increase from prior to the church shooting in Sutherland Springs.
Dishonorable discharges are used when someone is convicted by the military of violence or serious misconduct, or what would be a felony in the civilian world, according to CNN. A bad-conduct discharge could come from a domestic violence incident or drug dealing.
The more than 4,000 additional names included on the list are from dishonorable discharges only, CNN reported.
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