2nd Amendment expert Stephen Gutowski is out with a fact check of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s smear of Rep. Dan Crenshaw that we told you about earlier today.

THREAD ==>

It is already illegal to knowingly transfer a gun to somebody prohibited from owning them. HR8, passed by the house, would ban transfers of guns between friends without a background check. There are a few exceptions to that rule but @DanCrenshawTX's example is accurate. https://t.co/IXakit3Svt — Stephen Gutowski (@StephenGutowski) September 4, 2019

HR8 mandates that all transfers of guns (not just sales) must be made through a licensed gun dealer. That dealer must conduct a background check on the person who receives the gun as they are required to with transfers they conduct under current law.https://t.co/aiUSugA9ob — Stephen Gutowski (@StephenGutowski) September 4, 2019

There are exceptions for family members, transfers "necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm," and temporary transfers for use at a shooting range, hunting, or in the presence of the owner. pic.twitter.com/GLoVBOf0Cg — Stephen Gutowski (@StephenGutowski) September 4, 2019

So, to lend a friend a gun for personal protection as Crenshaw suggested, under HR8 you would need to travel to a gun dealer, transfer the gun to them, pay them a fee to process a background check, and then they would transfer the gun to your friend. — Stephen Gutowski (@StephenGutowski) September 4, 2019

Then you would have to go through the same process again in order to get the gun back from your friend. You would need to do the same thing every time you lent them your gun. — Stephen Gutowski (@StephenGutowski) September 4, 2019

How common is the situation that @DanCrenshawTX described? I honestly have no idea and don't know how you'd gather data on something like that either. His description of HR8 in this particular situation is accurate, though. — Stephen Gutowski (@StephenGutowski) September 4, 2019

HR8 would also make it illegal to store a gun at a friend's home or vice versa without first transferring it through a licensed dealer. But that's a different conversation, I suppose. — Stephen Gutowski (@StephenGutowski) September 4, 2019

***

Related: