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<p>HANOVER TWP. &#8212; The recent executive action taken on gun control has sparked debate among gun rights activists and those calling for more control.</p><p>President Barack Obama on Jan. 4 moved to expand background checks to cover more firearms sold at gun shows, online and anywhere else, aiming to curb a scourge of gun violence despite unyielding opposition to new laws in Congress.</p><p>In an attempt to prevent gun purchases from falling through the cracks, the FBI will also hire 230 more examiners to process background checks.</p><p>For Joe Lasecki Jr., owner of Nimrod Haven, the action isn&#8217;t earth-shattering.</p><p>&#8220;He&#8217;s going to require us to do exactly what we&#8217;re already doing,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Nothing&#8217;s changed in the state of Pennsylvania, really.&#8221;</p><p>Lasecki noted the only thing that may change is mandatory background checks for long gun sales. Currently, he said only federal forms are required for long gun sales.</p><p><strong>Process of buying a firearm</strong></p><p>When someone enters Lasecki&#8217;s store wanting to buy a handgun, they are required to fill out two forms &#8212; a federal Firearms Transaction Record and a state form. A licensed dealer, Lasecki processes the request and usually gets the result within 15 minutes.</p><p>Lasecki said those prohibited from buying firearms, but try anyway, are usually prosecuted. He explained that Pennsylvania State Police, which processes forms on the state level, will notify local police so the attempted buyer can be charged or arrested.</p><p>He said some people have been arrested and handcuffed inside his store.</p><p>Regardless of whether or not a customer is approved to purchase a firearm, Lasecki must keep hard copies of the forms in his store for 25 years.</p><p>According to the state police&#8217;s 2014 Firearms Annual Report, a total of 893,054 record checks were initiated using the Pennsylvania Instant Check System (PICS). Of those, 13,178 were denied.</p><p>While Lasecki said the executive action wouldn&#8217;t mean much for his business, he welcomes action that would bring background checks to gun shows.</p><p>&#8220;If he&#8217;s (Obama) going to stop that, that&#8217;s wonderful,&#8221; Lasecki said. He added vendors at gun shows don&#8217;t collect sales tax or charge for background checks.</p><p>The White House also said it plans to ask Congress for $500 million to improve mental health care, and Obama issued a memorandum directing federal agencies to conduct or sponsor research into smart gun technology that reduces the risk of accidental gun discharges.</p><p><strong>No need to fear?</strong></p><p>With talk of any form of gun control, Lasecki said, fear tends to grip gun owners.</p><p>&#8220;That&#8217;s kind of what happens when they don&#8217;t have all the facts &#8212; they panic,&#8221; he said.</p><p>He likened it to &#8220;a herd of horses &#8212; once the shot&#8217;s fired, the herd panics.&#8221;</p><p>That fear, he explained, often leads to an increased demand in firearms due to fears of a government confiscation of firearms which, in turn, leads to higher prices for firearms and ammunition.</p><p>Lasecki, however, said the only people who should worry about the executive orders are those already unable to purchase firearms.</p><p>&#8220;Those that already have them, they (government) aren&#8217;t going to go door to door and try to collect them,&#8221; he said. &#8220;They would have a civil war on their hands.&#8221;</p><p>Lasecki stressed some restrictions should be in place, but said a stand should be taken to defend the Second Amendment.</p><p>Be that as it may, he did not think the new mandates made by Obama would have done anything to prevent the recent mass shootings.</p><p>&#8220;Everything, he said, would have no affect on the mass shootings,&#8221; he said. &#8220;They would have occurred anyway.&#8221;</p><p><em>The Associated Press contributed to this report.</em></p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Nimrod Haven Sporting Goods owner Joe Lasecki Jr. removes one of the dozens of binders containing records of firearm sales from nearly 30 years of business at his store in Hanover Township. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/web1_TTL011816gunorder_cp_tk_2-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Nimrod Haven Sporting Goods owner Joe Lasecki Jr. removes one of the dozens of binders containing records of firearm sales from nearly 30 years of business at his store in Hanover Township. </caption0><photoCredit0>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/web1_TTL011816gunorder_cp_tk_3-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Binders containing more than 1,000 firearm records of sales just from 2012 alone at Nimrod Haven Sporting Goods in Hanover Township. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/web1_TTL011816gunorder_cp_tk_3-1.jpg</photo1><caption1>Binders containing more than 1,000 firearm records of sales just from 2012 alone at Nimrod Haven Sporting Goods in Hanover Township. </caption1><photoCredit1>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/web1_TTL011816gunorder_cp_tk_1-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Nimrod Haven Sporting Goods owner Joe Lasecki Jr. holds the six-page federal form for over-the-counter firearms transactions at his store in Hanover Township. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/web1_TTL011816gunorder_cp_tk_1-1.jpg</photo2><caption2>Nimrod Haven Sporting Goods owner Joe Lasecki Jr. holds the six-page federal form for over-the-counter firearms transactions at his store in Hanover Township. </caption2><photoCredit2>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit2></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Shop owner says executive action will not have much effect in Pa.</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Travis Kellar</p><p>tkellar@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Travis Kellar at 570-991-6389 or on Twitter @TLNews</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Joe Lasecki Jr., owner of Nimrod Haven in Hanover Township, says executive action means little for residents looking to buy firearms