re: Question about gun purchasing at pawn shops

There is no requirement to ensure the person you sell a gun to is legally allowed to possess a firearm. Its simply left as if you know or believe the person cannot legally own a firearm you cannot complete the sale. No ID, address, bill of sale, or even getting the persons name is required.

Registration would be a formal database of gun owners and the guns they own. In most states/cities this does not exist. Now having said that the Feds can follow the paper trail from manufacturer to the last dealer to transfer the firearm to an individual. But as for pawn shops most of the time "used guns" that paper trail has a hiatus once transfered to the first individual. If the gun goes back to a dealer the Feds don't know that dealer has gun XXXXX on his books. Also, serial numbers are not associated with the background call in and are only recorded on the 4473. So, all the feds know is that you purchased a handgun, rifle or other (and that info is supposed to be purged regularly).