Cho went by the book to purchase the guns he used

She said that the background checks required by most states and the federal government were cursory and didn't access many immigration, mental health and domestic violence records. The background checks, she said, also allowed people to buy guns even if they were on a terrorist watch list, or if they had been convicted of many serious misdemeanors, including aggravated assault and gun charges.

The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence grades Virginia's gun laws as C-minus, which leaves it ahead of the 32 states that get Ds or Fs. Virginia got a relatively high grade because of its restrictions on guns in the hands of people under 18 -- which did not apply to the 23-year-old Cho. State law also does not allow guns in elementary or high schools -- but there is no mention of colleges or universities.

Rand also said Virginia was lenient in allowing people to obtain concealed-weapons permits. It was not known Tuesday whether Cho had such a permit.

Some opponents of gun control argue that limiting access to firearms would not have prevented Monday's carnage. Markell, the gun shop owner, said he wished Virginia Tech students were allowed to carry firearms on campus. Sporting a holstered gun and a Glock cap himself Tuesday, he said he thought it would make the campus safer.

Nevertheless, Markell said he was "torn up over the shooting."

"I don't think I'm responsible, but at the same time it made me feel terrible that it was one of our guns."

But, he added, "I feel that the same thing would have happened if he'd bought the gun somewhere else."

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josh.meyer@latimes.com

richard.fausset@latimes.com

Meyer reported from Washington and Fausset from Roanoke. Times staff writer Joel Havemann in Washington contributed to this report.