Police chiefs from across the United States have called for universal background checks for firearms purchases, citing opinion polls in which most Americans consistently support such restrictions.
The proliferation of firearms is one of the factors behind a rise in homicide rates in many U.S. cities this year, according to senior law enforcement officials at the International Association of Chiefs of Police conference in Chicago.
Acknowledging the power of the gun lobby and the reluctance of Congress to enact stricter gun laws, the police chiefs told a news conference Monday that they were not anti-gun, but wanted to keep weapons out of the hands of people with criminal backgrounds.