NYC Probes Arizona Gun Show

Private investigators sent by New York City found it all too easy to buy semiautomatic pistols at an Arizona gun show, even after telling the dealer that they "probably couldn't" pass a background check. The shows are exempt from background checks but dealers are barred from selling weapons to anybody they believe is prohibited from buying them.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg has conducted several such stings in recent years as part of his crusade to cut down on illegal gun sales across the country, the New York Times reports. "Our investigation shows how easy it is for anyone to buy a semiautomatic handgun and a high-capacity magazine, no questions asked," the mayor's chief policy adviser said. "If we don't fix it now, the question is not whether another massacre will occur, but when." (More gun show stories.)