Gun Purchases Hitting Record Highs in Florida

200,000 more people requested background checks in 2012 than in 2011, twice as many as in 2004

As gun control becomes a central focus of Washington in the first few months of the 113th Congress, Floridians are buying guns at a frenetic pace.

In 2012, 797,970 Floridians requested background checks so they could purchase weapons. That total represented nearly 200,000 more than in 2011 and almost double the number from 2004, according to CBS4 news partner the Miami Herald.