A senior correspondent for Business Insider investigated "the availability of guns at Walmart" by attempting to purchase a firearm, but proved unable to do so after failing a background check.

"I went to Walmart with the intention of buying a gun last week as part of an investigation into the placement, selection, marketing, and security of firearms in Walmart's stores, and to learn more about the retailer's processes governing gun sales," Hayley Peterson said in article should wrote for Business Insider. "My journey to bring a gun home from Walmart turned out to be far more complicated than I expected."

Walmart's lack of advertising and the fact they only sell guns in certain stores frustrated Peterson's attempt to buy one. After failing a background check, she decided that buying a gun at Walmart was not worth it.



It was nearly impossible to figure out which Walmart stores sell guns (only half of them do). I called multiple stores and Walmart's main customer service line. No one could tell me where I could buy a gun. — Hayley Peterson (@hcpeterson) August 21, 2019



Peterson failed the background check after her home address did not match the one on her license. The clerk told her that she would have to bring in another document with the correct address to pass.

"She apologized, told me the rules were strict around background checks, and asked me to come back another time to finish the purchase," Peterson recounted. "At this point, I decided to give up on buying a gun at Walmart."

Peterson's investigation came amid claims that background checks do not adequately prevent gun violence. Some have called for Walmart to stop selling firearms altogether, including half-a-dozen Democratic presidential candidates, such as Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Bernie Sanders of Vermont.