Air Force Error Allows Texas Church Shooter To Buy Guns

SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, Texas (AP) — Authorities say the gunman who killed 26 people at a Texas church was able to buy weapons because the Air Force did not report his domestic violence conviction to the federal database.

Federal officials said Monday that the Air Force didn't submit Devin Patrick Kelley's criminal history despite being required to do so by Pentagon rules. An Air Force spokeswoman says the service has launched a review of its handling of Kelley's case.

Kelley was found guilty of assault during a court-martial in 2012 for abusing his then-wife and her child. He was given 12 months' confinement, followed by a bad-conduct discharge in 2014. Authorities say that's the same year he bought the first of four weapons.

In 2015, a report by the Pentagon's inspector general found lapses in the military's reporting to civilian authorities of domestic violence convictions.