Head of FTC Accuses Virginia State Police of Slow-Walking Background Checks Ahead of Ban

Virginia gun shops have been absolutely swamped ahead of Wednesday, when the state’s “assault firearm” and “large capacity” magazine ban is scheduled to take effect. A preliminary injunction blocking the state police from enforcing the law is currently in place, and plaintiffs in another lawsuit are hoping a judge in Washington County will grant an injunction against enforcement by any law enforcement agency, but I think it’s fair to say that even with one injunction in place many Virginians aren’t confident they’ll still be able to purchase a 20-round magazine or an AR-15 later this week. 

One of those Virginians is Federal Trade Commission chair Andrew Ferguson, who believes the Virginia State Police are intentionally taking their sweet time processing background checks in an attempt to slow down sales. 

Just visited my neighborhood gun dealer in Virginia. The Virginia State Police @VSPPIO is delaying background checks en masse in one of the most flagrant violations of our rights that I’ve seen. This is outrageous. Our police are aiding radical leftists to disarm Americans.…

— Andrew Ferguson (@AFergusonFTC) June 28, 2026

DOJ Civil Rights Division chief Harmeet K. Dhillon responded to Ferguson on X over the weekend, saying the agency was closely watching what’s happening in the Old Dominion. 

We are all over this and other gun-grabbing nonsense nationally. Stay tuned! https://t.co/Vf4kZOMnWR

— AAGHarmeetDhillon (@AAGDhillon) June 28, 2026

Dhillon has already hinted that DOJ will be filing suit over Virginia’s gun and magazine ban if and when it takes effect, and it’s good to see her keeping tabs on what’s happening in the days before the ban becomes law as well. 

But are the state police really intentionally delaying processing background checks just to stymie gun owners ahead of the July 1 deadline? Virginia Citizens Defense League head Philip Van Cleave isn’t so sure. 

I don’t want to be unfair to the Virginia State Police. I’m not convinced that the delays are intentional. What has happened is gun sales have exploded every place I go. Every gun store is packed. Gun shows are packed. I just don’t think VSP and their computer system is geared…

— Philip Van Cleave VCDL (@VCDL_ORG) June 28, 2026

Van Cleave got a fair amount of pushback for his suggestion, but I suspect that he’s right. We won’t have a good idea of the volume of NICS checks in Virginia this month until at least Wednesday, but we do know that the number of NICS checks on gun transfers in May of 2026 was about double what it was in Virginia in May, 2025. The volume of sales has definitely increased since then, with many FFLs seeing long lines of customers who are purchasing soon-to-be-banned firearms as soon as they hit the shelves. I wouldn’t be surprised if sales are running 300% to 400% above normal at the moment, and that could easily result in some delays in the VSP’s ability to conduct checks. 

Having said that, this was also a foreseeable issue. Sales have been steadily increasing in Virginia for months now, and it stands to reason that there will be a massive spike ahead of July 1. Has the VSP transferred any personnel to the background check unit to address the increased demand placed on them? Did they take any steps to streamline the process or prepare for the sales spike? 

Those are some of the questions Dhillon and her team at DOJ will likely pose to Virginia State Police Col. Jeffrey Katz in the days to come. I’m very curious to learn the answers to those questions, but for now my advice to Virginians heading to their local gun store is have patience, but don’t delay. 

Editor’s Note: The radical Left will stop at nothing to enact their radical gun control agenda and strip us of our Second Amendment rights.

Help us continue to report on and expose the Democrats’ gun control policies and schemes. Join Bearing Arms VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.