The Supreme Court on Tuesday explicitly upheld continued federal regulation of so-called “ghost guns,” which can be assembled from kits into working firearms without background checks or standard serial numbers.
At issue during oral argument was whether these devices met the federal definitions of “firearms” and “frames and receivers,” and whether the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) The question was whether it exceeded its authority to regulate and compel sales.
Ghost guns are functional do-it-yourself weapons that are often purchased online and sold by some sellers as easy to assemble.
The Department of Justice announced that more than 19,000 hard-to-trace ghost guns were seized by law enforcement in 2021, an increase of more than 10 times in just five years.
Texas Supreme Court rejects challenge to medical exception to state's abortion ban
A ghost gun on display at San Francisco Police Department Headquarters in San Francisco on November 27, 2019. (AP Photo/Haven Daily, File)
This is driven in part by recent advances in technology, many of which include polymer-based, unassembled firearm parts.
Final assembly at home typically involves the use of several readily available tools, such as drilling holes and milling or sanding unfinished frames and receivers to allow for the attachment of parts. There is a need.
US Attorney General Elizabeth Preloger said the increasing sale of untraceable “ghost guns” is creating a “public safety crisis” with an “explosive increase” in crimes using them.
During 75 minutes of arguments, several justices appeared to support many of the Biden administration's arguments, suggesting that the nearly complete parts meet the normal definition of a regulated firearm.
“What's the purpose of selling it without drilling the receiver?'' Chief Justice John Roberts rejected suggestions that the kits were being sold to weekend gun enthusiasts. “I don't think just drilling a hole or two will get you the kind of reward you get from working on cars on the weekends. I know it's not that hard to do. .”
Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who could be a key deciding vote, expressed concern that someone unaware of the law could accidentally sell or buy a ghost gun kit.
“For example, what happens if a seller is criminally charged because they had no idea, really had no idea, that they were breaking the law?”
But Kavanaugh also signaled some support for the government's position, telling Preloger that “your interpretation of the law is enforceable.”
Pennsylvania governor takes victory lap as Supreme Court rejects Republican proposal to overturn election law 'misappropriation'
A bump stock and handgun are recovered during a buyback event in the Wilmington area of Los Angeles, California, USA on Saturday, March 4, 2023. (Jill Connelly/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The Gun Control Act of 1968 was amended in 2022 to regulate the growing market for certain “buy-build-shoot” kits.
This law defines “firearm'' as “any weapon that emits, or is designed to, or may be readily converted to expel, a projectile by the action of an explosive,'' and “any such weapon. frame or receiver.
The government said it is not banning the sale or use of these kits, only requiring them to follow the same requirements as other commercial firearms dealers. This includes part serial numbers and buyer background checks.
A federal appeals court struck down the latest rule late last year following legal challenges from kit sellers and buyers, but the Justice Department appealed to the Supreme Court.
Gun rights groups call the rule “unconstitutional and abusive” and say ghost gun kits consist of “objects that are not firearms.”
Lawyer Peter Patterson said only Congress could change the ghost gun laws, which, if fully implemented, would put 42 of the 43 unlicensed kit manufacturers out of business. Deaf added.
Devices can also be created from 3D printers or individual parts. This is part of a separate legal challenge in lower courts.
SCOTUS begins historic term under intense scrutiny amid code of ethics debate
U.S. Supreme Court justices pose for official portraits in Washington, DC, on October 7, 2022. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
During oral arguments, the high court debated whether it was easy to assemble a “ghost gun” from a kit and whether the justices should weigh in on the issue.
“I'm concerned that the court will take over what Congress might have intended in this situation,” Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said. “So that all we have to do as part of this argument here today is decide what we think a firearm is, so that we don't have to interpret the legal term differently than we do.” I don't think you can assume that the authorities are exceeding their authority whenever they interpret it.”
But others in the courtroom questioned whether the bundle of unassembled parts really made a gun.
“Here's a blank pad and pen, okay? Is this a shopping list?” Justice Samuel Alito asked. “When I asked you to show me, there are eggs, chopped ham, chopped green peppers, and onions lined up on the counter. Is that a Western-style omelet?”
Justice Amy Coney Barrett then appeared to blunt Alito's argument by focusing on do-it-yourself kits.
“If I ordered from HelloFresh and received a kit and it was something like turkey chili, would my answer change if all the ingredients were in the kit?” I asked, referring to delivery services.
Barrett also appears skeptical of legal alternatives to the ATF rule proposed by Patterson, an attorney representing gun rights advocates.
“It's a bit of a myth,” she said.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Vince Warner fires an AK-47 with a bump stock installed at Goodguys Gun and Range in Orem, Utah, on February 21, 2018. (George Fry/Getty Images)
Prelogers claimed that the new rules have significantly reduced online sales of ready-to-assemble weapons.
ATF regulations require that unfinished firearm parts, such as handgun frames and long gun receivers, be treated like completed firearms. These parts require a license and require a serial number.
The rule also requires manufacturers to conduct background checks on these parts before selling them, as is required for all commercial firearms.
The Supreme Court previously ruled, with Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett voting with the court's three liberal members to form a majority, allowing the regulation to remain in effect while the case continues in court. was.
Justices have been revisiting the Second Amendment in recent years after a conservative majority in 2022 made it easier to carry a handgun outside the home for protection.
In June, the high court struck down a federal ban on bump stocks, devices that turn semiautomatic rifles into weapons capable of firing hundreds of rounds per minute.
But that same month, justices upheld a federal ban on firearm possession for people subject to certain domestic violence restraining orders.
The case is Garland v. Vanderstock (23-852). A verdict is expected to be rendered by summer 2025.
