The number of FBI background checks required for Americans buying guns set a record in December, according to FBI data. The rise follows concerns about possible bans on certain firearms following the Connecticut school massacre.
The FBI said it recorded 2.78 million background checks during the month, surpassing the mark set in November of 2.01 million checks – about a 39 percent rise. The latest monthly figure was up 49 percent over December 2011, when the FBI performed a then-record 1.86 million checks.
FBI checks for all of 2012 totaled 19.6 million, an annual record and an increase of 19 percent over 2011.
