Federal judge strikes down ATF 'ghost gun' rule for 3D printed parts — says restrictions violate Fifth Amendment and historical tradition of DIY gunsmithing

Judge Reed O’Connor of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas just shot down an ATF ruling requiring part kits that can readily be converted into functional weapons, frames or receivers, to be subject to the same regulations as complete guns. The case has a dramatic impact on the 3D printer market, as several states, including California, Colorado, New York, and Washington State, are taking action against ghost guns by putting bans and limitations on 3D printers. According to The Hill, the judge said that the rule “contradicts the actual historical tradition of personal gunsmithing” and its vagueness violates the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment.

“After the Revolutionary War, ‘gunsmithing was a universal need in early America, [and] many early Americans who were professionals in other occupations engaged in gunsmithing as an additional occupation or hobby.’ Id. at 66. ‘Regulations on self-built arms are not longstanding. In fact, there were no restrictions on the manufacture of arms for personal use in America during the seventeenth, eighteenth, or nineteenth centuries.’ Id. at 78. Thus, the Court cannot conclude that the Final Rule’s imposition of ambiguous and far-reaching regulations, which would restrict access to component parts thereby inhibiting home gunsmithing, comports with the Second Amendment,” O’Connor wrote in his legal opinion [PDF].

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) enacted this rule in 2022, which required retailers to run background checks on anyone purchasing parts kits that could be used to build a firearm. It also clearly defined what a firearm frame or receiver is and noted which gun parts are required to have a serial number. Gun sellers and gunsmiths were also required to add a serial number on the 3D-printed guns and other non-serialized firearms, as well as extend their records from two decades to the entirety of their license. These rules were supposed to help keep “ghost guns” in control, which are increasingly being used in crimes and are harder for the authorities to trace.

The U.S. Supreme Court actually upheld this ATF regulation in March of last year, after gun rights groups and manufacturers challenged it. They alleged that this ruling overstepped the authority that Congress placed on the ATF, but the majority, in a 7-2 vote, said that the agency was within its rights to do so. But as for the constitutionality of the order, Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote in the majority opinion, “Future cases may present other and more difficult questions about ATF’s regulations. But we take cases as they come and today resolve only the question posed to us.” It’s likely the O’Connors ruling will be challenged before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, before eventually making its way before the Supreme Court once more.

The restrictions have caused some uproar in the 3D printing community, especially as the proposed rules could make it harder or even impossible for enthusiasts to print parts that might look like guns. These could also cause issues among open-source printers and small manufacturers, especially as they often do not have the resources needed to implement the regulations that these states are considering. Nevertheless, 3D printing manufacturers and platforms recognize the threat of ghost guns, and some of them have started using AI to detect and eliminate gun designs.

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