The Center for American Progress, meanwhile, used the case to call for tightening the law on background checks. "Like the Virginia Tech massacre, the Columbine massacre, and countless everyday shootings, gaps in our gun background-check system contributed to the Charleston attack," said Arkadi Gerney, senior vice president at the Center for American Progress. "The answer is simple: All records of prohibited individuals need to go in the FBI system and every gun sale needs to go through a background check."