Church shooting victims sue FBI over gun purchase

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The families of some of the nine people killed in a South Carolina church are suing the FBI.

Their lawsuit accuses the federal government of errors that enabled Dylann Roof to buy the .45-caliber handgun used in the June 2015 shootings at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston.

Federal officials didn’t immediately return an email. FBI Director James Comey has said Roof shouldn’t have been able to buy the gun and promised a full review.

Lexington County Sheriff Jay Koon told The Associated Press last summer that a clerk entered incorrect information for Roof’s prior drug arrest, which prevented an FBI examiner from finding the arrest details when Roof tried to buy a gun.

Attorney Andy Savage represents the three parishioners who survived the attack, as well as the families of five who died. He told the AP recently that his clients are concerned about gun safety and hope their lawsuit will lead to changes.

“All of our clients ... are very committed to the lives of their loved ones not being lost in vain, and to use the forum which they involuntarily have been given to push for reasonable safety regulations,” Savage said.

Roof is currently jailed pending death penalty trials in both state and federal court on charges including murder and hate crimes.