SALEM -- House Democrats held an emotional hearing Thursday on legislation that would ban default gun sales when background checks take longer than three days.

House Bill 4147, sponsored by House Majority Leader Jennifer Williamson, D-Portland, emerged in the wake of a mass shooting at a Charleston, S.C., church that left nine people dead.

The suspected gunman, federal authorities found, bought his weapon after his background check took longer than three days. If the sale had waited for the check to come back, the sale would have been denied because of a drug conviction.

Gun sellers in Oregon have the same latitude to sell guns after 72 hours -- something gun control advocates have dubbed the "Charleston loophole."

Gun sale background checks by the numbers

Background checks overall

2015:

262,838

2014:

233,878

2013:

263,283

2012:

259,513

2011:

197,888

Background checks subject to delay

2015:

8,467 (3.22%)

2014:

8,010 (3.42%)

2013:

10,113 (3.85%)

2012:

9,164 (3.53%)

2011:

9,304 (4.70%)

Denial rates for background checks in 2015

All checks:

0.73 percent

Denied checks:

5 percent

Source: Oregon State Police

Williamson, appearing in front of the House Judiciary Committee, brought in the daughter of a woman killed in Charleston to help press her case.

The Rev. Sharon Risher led off with testimony about the pain she felt after learning a man had walked into her family's church and gunned down her mother Ethel Lance, and two cousins, Susie Jackson and Tywanza Sanders.

"That pain was compounded by the shock when I learned that because of a flaw in our background check system a dangerous man was able to buy a gun and shoot nine beautiful people with it," said Risher, whose trip to Oregon was funded by gun control group, Everytown Survivors Network. "The gun dealer in this case decided to proceed with the sale even though the background check was not complete."

"The consequences of that decision are devastating," Risher continued.

But supporters of the Charleston bill took turns at the microphone for more than two hours with opponents who argued the bill was a socialist overreach and an unfair burden on law-abiding gun owners already struggling with what they see as Oregon's troubled background check system.

Legislation in 2015 expanded background checks to all private sales. Gun owners and sellers say the state hasn't hired enough inspectors to handle surges in sales around the holidays and before the start of hunting season. Williamson said she's planning to ask for extra funding this year to hire more inspectors.

Kevin Starrett of the Oregon Firearms Federation complained to lawmakers that state police officers "don't care" about delays or problems. He said he's heard hundreds of stories from gun buyers detailing hurdles and other glitches.

One gun buyer whose background check was delayed, Starrett said, managed to pass a subsequent check while still waiting for the first one to come back clear.

"It's a bad idea and it should be rejected," he said of Williamson's bill.

Data from the state police found delays in just 8,467 -- or 3.2 percent -- of the 262,838 background checks conducted last year. Most checks went through within minutes.

Background checks fail for several reasons: mental health commitments, domestic violence, restraining orders, and felony convictions. When checks are delayed, it's often because inspectors have to track down court and police records from out of state. Buyers whose checks were delayed were five times more likely to have been ineligible.

House members said little about the bill once testimony finished. The Judiciary committee has yet to schedule a vote. Bills must have committee votes scheduled by Friday or else die.

Thursday's hearing was the first to tackle gun legislation since last fall's mass shooting Umpqua Community College in Roseburg. That shooting was the deadliest in Oregon's history.

"Most responsible gun dealers wait until the background check is complete. But not everybody does," Williamson said. "Closing this loophole is the right thing to do."

-- Denis C. Theriault

503-221-8430; @TheriaultPDX