LAS VEGAS -- Metro's gun registration policy is coming into question and could be the focus of a big debate in the next legislative session. Critics say the 72-hour mandatory requirement is an arcane relic of the Mob era that infringes on constitutional rights.
Clark County is a little different and that's what has gun enthusiasts concerned. They don't understand why Clark County is the only county in the state with this rule.
If you move here with a gun you have 60 days to register it. If you buy a gun, you have 72 hours to get in compliance. Simple requirement or dangerous precedent?
If you like a little power in your hands and the smell of black powder lingering in the air, you go to the gun store. Owner Bob Irwin says Metro's rule to register the guns is just a hollow point.
"This is one of the many laws that affects, seems to affect, only honest people," said Irwin.
And Irwin has some powerful support from state Senator John Lee. He feels it's an annoying hardship.
"We have to take it down, have them look at it, have them register it, have them give us a blue card for every handgun we have, not just one," said state Sen. John Lee, (D) Las Vegas.
He has been pushing for years to change the law. Originally passed in the 1940's to limit Mob influence and crime, it was modified in 1989 to only apply to Clark County.
Firearms Registration Information
"The time has come for them to prove to us what is the value of it and why are we continuing to do this in these tough economic times," Lee said.
"At least $500,000 a year to collect paperwork," said Victor Joecks with the Nevada Policy Research Institute who has also asked for reform. The NPRI says the full-time staff isn't useful and double dips with current federal background checks.
"If you got it from a private party and you're a criminal, you aren't walking to the police station and saying look, here's my handgun," said Joecks.
They admit filling out a card isn't a real hassle. It's simply the principle of a program that may not do very much to fight crime.
"If we don't register religions, we don't register speech, why are we registering handguns?"
Las Vegas Metro police chose not to comment on this story but NPRI was told by them that the program does help with keeping up with locations of weapon stashes and can help with stolen weapons.
Debate on this law is expected in the upcoming legislative session.
