Tulsa shooting puts focus on waiting periods for gun buyers

FILE -Two people hug as they are reunited at Memorial High School after being evacuated from the scene of a shooting at the Natalie Medical Building Wednesday, June 1, 2022. in Tulsa, Okla. The man who shot and killed four people this week at a Tulsa, Okla., hospital bought his AR-style semiautomatic rifle just hours before he began the killing spree. That would not have been possible in Washington and a half dozen other states that have waiting periods of days or even more than a week before people can take possession of such weapons. (Ian Maule/Tulsa World via AP, File)

SEATTLE (AP) — The mass shootings in Uvalde, Texas, and Tulsa, Oklahoma, are again putting the focus on gun control measures such as waiting periods to buy firearms. Advocates say such measures can provide authorities with time to complete background checks and create a “cooling off” period for people who might pose an imminent danger.

The gunman who killed his surgeon, another doctor and two others this week in Tulsa bought an AR-style rifle hours beforehand.

Just nine states and Washington, D.C., have explicit waiting periods before people can purchase at least some types of firearms.

Gun-rights advocates say such laws hinder people who seek guns to protect themselves.