Charted: Background checks

There were nearly 2.8 million instant criminal background checks in Arkansas during the past decade.

• That averages more than 250,000 each year, except in 2020 — the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic — when more than 324,000 checks were performed.

The big picture: The FBI's numbers do not equate directly to sales of firearms, but show a person's intention to purchase.