Woman, accused of lying about mental condition when purchasing a firearm, indicted

Woman, accused of lying about mental condition when purchasing a firearm, indicted

[Mississippi]

A woman who purchased a firearm in Lauderdale County has been indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly falsely stating she had never been committed to a mental institution.

The two-count indictment was filed Wednesday in federal court against Tamesha Lewis. No information was immediately available on Lewis' age or when she was committed to a mental institution.

The indictment, signed by U.S. Attorney Michael Hurst, said Lewis on or about March 21, in connection with the acquisition of a firearm from Garrett's LLC, a licensed firearm dealer in Meridian, knowingly made a false and factitious written statement to Garrett's that was intended and likely to deceive.

Lewis represented she had never been found mentally defective or been committed to a mental institution when she answered no in Block 11.f on the Department of Treasury, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms Form 4473.

"The defendant then knew she had been committed to a mental institution," according to the indictment.

Federal law mandates a criminal background check when a person is buying a weapon from a licensed gun dealer.

A warning on the Firearms Transaction Record says the information provided will be used to determine the person is prohibited from receiving a firearm. Some violations of the Gun Control Act can lead to up to 10 years in prison and/or a $250,000 fine.

The offense Lewis is charged with carries a penalty of up to one year in prison.

The issue of mental health background checks is frequently raised following mass shootings, as was the case with Nikolas Cruz, accused of killing 17 during a shooting rampage at a Florida high school in February.

When a person is buying a firearm from a licensed dealer, the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System is used to try to determine if the person is prohibited from buying a gun.

A USA Today report has said gun buyers are seldom turned down because of mental illness, citing figures that about 1.4 percent of the roughly 1.2 million background checks resulted in a denial due to mental health issues.