LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — FOX5 is taking a deeper look at Nevada laws for concealed carry firearm permits and weapons purchases following the investigation into the Manhattan shooter suspect.
Shane Tamura had an active CCW Permit since 2022 through the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
FOX5 has reported that Tamura had two psychiatric holds, one in 2022 and another in 2024.
Nevada law places CCW permit and purchasing restrictions on individuals with court-documented mental health issues.
“Nevada is what we call a ‘shall issue’ state, meaning that if there’s not a preclusion to you having a carrying concealed weapon permit, you get one,” said criminal defense attorney Josh Tomsheck, who is an expert in 2nd Amendment legal analysis.
What “precludes” someone from getting a CCW permit in Nevada?
A CCW permit application in Nevada is processed through your local Sheriff’s Department. Your application is cross-checked with records from the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) and the state’s Central Repository for Nevada Records of Criminal History.
Tomsheck explains, besides felony convictions, very specific mental health criteria can preclude someone from having a permit.
Tomsheck lists some judgment examples from courts:
- Convicted but mentally ill
- Pled guilty but mentally ill
- Convicted by a jury but found to be mentally ill
- Found not guilty by reason of insanity
- An involuntary commitment from a court
- Signed judicial order for mental health treatment
“That information is stored in the criminal history repository. When someone goes through a background check for purposes of buying a firearm, those things would prevent them under our state law from owning or possessing a firearm,” Tomsheck said.
A 72-hour psychiatric hold, commonly known in Nevada as a “Legal 2000,“ does not qualify for entry into the state’s Central Repository for Nevada Records of Criminal History, Tomsheck said.
“There’s no requirement that be reported to the criminal history repository and there’s no record maintained of it. A legal 2000 is a mechanism, if someone’s in a mental health crisis. It’s actually relatively common for people with substance abuse and mental health issues,” he said. “It can be initiated by law enforcement, a doctor or a social worker, but those records aren’t maintained in the same way an adjudication related to a mental health issue is,” Tomsheck said.
FOX5 reported that, according to the NYPD, Tamura purchased the rifle used in the attack from his supervisor at the Horseshoe Casino.
What are Nevada laws for gun purchases?
According to Tomsheck, whether you purchase a firearm from a private citizen or a federal firearms licensee, you have to fill out the ATF Form 4473.
“I have to certify that I’m the actual purchaser of that firearm, and I have to certify that I don’t have any of those precluding issues: I haven’t renounced my citizenship, I’m not an illegal alien, I don’t have a felony conviction, that I’m not a habitual user of a controlled substance, and that I don’t have a mental health defect. If I purchase a gun from someone else, I need to go through a federal firearms licensee in order to initiate that transfer,” Tomsheck said.
It is against federal law to purchase of firearms on behalf of another person.
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