Georgia’s law allows mentally ill to buy guns after 5 years

After the shooting deaths of 17 high school students in south Florida a week ago, the public’s attention has once again shifted to the role mental illness plays in mass shootings, and the role the government can play in restricting gun sales to the mentally ill.

Each year, Georgia provides the FBI with the records of thousands of Georgians who have been involuntarily committed for mental health treatment. Their names are added to the National Instant Background Check System that gun sellers check before a sale.

Unlike all other states, Georgia has a law that requires the removal of names from that list after five years.