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This is TTAG’s weekly roundup of legal and legislative news affecting guns, the gun business and gun owners’ rights. For a deeper dive into the topics discussed here, check out this week in gun rights at FPC. 

Florida Fighting Off Feisty Municipalities

After the Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school murders, a group of Florida municipal governments sought to overturn Florida’s 2011 preemption law, which generally prevented state and local governments from imposing criminal penalties on firearm ownership and possession more strict than state law. The object of the law was to save gun owner from having to navigate a patchwork of jurisdictions where their choice to keep and bear arms might land them in jail on one side of the street, and totally okay on the other.

Naturally, the desire of the cities was to “do something,” as we’ve seen time and time again. We now see the state of Florida, somewhat ironically, fighting off local attempts at stricter gun laws. The state has filed briefs in an appeal from a trial court judgment that found parts of the preemption law unconstitutional.

The arguments focus on finer points of Florida constitutional law and the powers reserved to local government. I wish the focus was instead on the lack of any sound basis for a local government to engage in dangerous, divisive, and unconstitutional policy. It’s clear what the localities want to do.

They’re interested in following in the footsteps of counties in Colorado and elsewhere in passing their own assault weapon bans, and other constitutionally dubious “public safety” laws which happen not to benefit public safety.

Ghost Guns
(Office of Attorney General of New Jersey via AP)

Fingers Point at Ghost Gun Used in Saugus High School Murders

Two weeks ago in Santa Clarita, California, a 16-year-old killed two fellow students and injured three before killing himself. The awful crime itself isn’t the only reason this story is drawing attention.

The handgun the murderer used may have been assembled from a kit. According to the local sheriff, the firearm used in Saugus was a serial-less 1911, the type which can be made from a kit commonly available from a host of retailers.

I don’t see how the ease of completion is relevant. It is, and always has been, legal for ordinary adults to make firearms for their own personal use. Focusing on the difficulty of a particular firearm build implies that, if it’s somehow too easy, it would somehow be okay to regulate.

I resist that forcefully. Technology may advance to the point where you can press a button in the morning and come home from work to a fully functional semi-automatic rifle. Regardless, murder remains illegal, and the right to keep and bear arms remains an essential human right. The two concepts are not in tension, in fact they complement one another.

A ban or regulation on home builds would also necessarily infringe on the First Amendment activity of trading designs. On top of that, there is  nothing more traceable about any other firearm the murderous teen may have gotten hold of.

What good would it do if, after the tragic fact, the ATF were able to say the firearm was last sold years before at a sporting goods store hours away? Nothing.

The CSI-effect leads people to believe that law enforcement is somehow able to follow every firearm. In reality, once a firearm falls into private hands, it is really no more traceable with a serial number than without.

The obsessive focus on the “ghost gun” used in this particular crime is a product of both the rarity of homemade firearms use in crimes, and the need for each horrifying public murder to have some scapegoat to legislate away.

If the teen really did assemble the gun himself, or even just take possession of it as he did, he broke a list of California laws the length of which we’d have trouble covering in a day.

State Sen. Adam Ebbin, D-Alexandria. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

Virginia Dem Proposes Banning Free Speech Guns on Capitol Square

An aggressive, one-feature assault weapon ban is one of many proposals to wash through the newly Democrat-dominated Virginia state legislature. State Sen. Adam Ebbin has filed a bill to ban weapons on the state’s Capitol Square, where pro-gun activists have staged rallies for years.

Ebbin’s justification is that, “these are areas that need to be secure…I think it’s better to err on the side of protection.” I agree. I think it’s better to err on the side of protecting the people’s rights, rather than making up nonsense reasons to jail people peacefully going about their business.

The bill, of course, grants special privileges to special people. Law enforcement, security personnel, military, and officers of the court are exempted, but notably not members of the general assembly. Anyone who violates the ban faces up to a year in jail, fines of up to $2,500, and seizure of any weapons discovered on Capitol Square.

Colorado red flag law
Colorado State Sen. Brittany Pettersen, D-Lakewood, applauds after speaking at a bill signing that allowed Colorado to become the 15th state to adopt a “red flag” law permitting firearms to be taken from people who pose a danger during a ceremony in the state Capitol in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)

Several Colorado Sheriffs Refusing to Enforce Red Flag Laws

Colorado’s red flag law takes effect January 1, and according to a special on 60 Minutes aired last week, dozens of Colorado sheriffs and counties will refuse to enforce it.

We’ve talked about red flag laws and their awful consequences a lot. We’ve also talked about the toothless nature of most “Second Amendment sanctuary” provisions. If there isn’t an affirmative cause of action against local authorities who enforce these unconstitutional, immoral laws, even in a sanctuary, just know their assurances are wholly symbolic.

3D Printed Gun Hits a New Lo-Point

Last week, homemade gun legend CTRL+Pew, through the collaborative platforms of Deterrence Dispensed and Free Men Don’t Ask, released what may be his finest work to-date: the Lo-Point pistol. A tongue-in-cheeky named 3D-printable frame for Hi-Point firearms, the project was aimed at making self-defense even more affordable. 

Hi-point firearms can be purchased new for well under $200, but parts kits for Hi-Points can be had for as little as $30. With a cheap 3D-printer, $3 worth of plastic, and some skill and ingenuity, any person legally eligible to own a firearm, and who doesn’t live in a state that hates free speech, can lawfully have a (somewhat) effective firearm.

Hats off to CRTL+Pew.

 

Matthew Larosiere is Director of Legal Policy for the Firearms Policy Coalition.

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

51 COMMENTS

  2. The last time I saw a price of a 3 d printer, it was around $ 2000. My budget says that is not “cheap”.

    • Usable hobby brand printers can be had for around $160. True they may be a bit more fussy to use but something like an Ender 3 with the bed leveled well and a cheap lowes mirror tile cut to fit the heated bed can do very decent prints.
      I just so happened to pick up a reel of nylonX recently for a project. I just might run off one of these just because.

      • How cheap is a printer capable of printing wax that can be used for lost-wax investment casting?

        • You do not need wax, look up lost pla casting.
          Natural uncolored pla works perfectly and smells a lot nicer than wax in the burnout oven.
          I turned one of the 10-22 receiver stl files into a decent aluminum casting. A bit of cleanup and fitting resulted in a cheap functional receiver. What would these be called, 0% maybe?

        • “I turned one of the 10-22 receiver stl files into a decent aluminum casting.”

          Inneresting. Would brass work as well? Fairly low melt temp, easy to machine and work, and it would polish up beautifully.

          A recycled range brass ‘Golden Boy’ 10-22 receiver brought to a high gloss would look really sharp.

          And Leftist heads would explode over recycling used to make GUNS!!! 😉

        • I wonder how hard it would be to add lead to the alloy? Perfect use for spent bullets add some to the brass from the cartridges to make it stronger and self lubing. Almost like the circle of life.

    • There are plenty of places on the internet you can go to get plans for all sorts of 3D printers you can build yourself for about $50 in commonly found parts.

      If that’s too much, the county library here has a 3D printer for public use. Bring your own files.

  3. Hi-point firearms can be purchased new for well under $200, but parts kits for Hi-Points can be had for as little as $30. With a cheap 3D-printer, $3 worth of plastic, and some skill and ingenuity, any person legally eligible to own a firearm, and who doesn’t live in a state that hates free speech, can lawfully have a (somewhat) effective firearm.

    Anyone who can afford a “cheap” 3D printer can already afford a real Hi-Point or better.

  4. the only places I know that want that power in Fl. is those big hell holes that are run by democrats but 90+ percent want less gun control and I know most people want less

    • The problem is the voting population in those hell holes controls the entire state. Be grateful for the Electoral College and two federal senators per state regardless of population. Otherwise, two or three states would control the entire country.

  5. The Author ignores the fact that if home made guns are kept legal it will always be a steady supply source for felons and nut cases that are barred from owning weapons. Its that simple and even the mentally challenged can understand that.

    It was revealed on this past Sunday on Global GPS that the latest polls show that 90 per cent of Republican voters want universal background checks to help slow down the avalanche of unvetted weapons flowing into the hands of banned persons who go on to commit murder, robberies and also mass murder. Again its not rocket science as anyone presently can buy a home made or second hand unvetted weapon in any state and at any time of the day with no questions asked with cash on the barrel head. If there ever was a criminals or nut case paradise its the U.S. where an insane lack of gun control is now totally gone out of control and beyond all comprehension.

    What is to be gained by not having it, nothing but more draconian gun bans that simply ban the ownership of weapons.

    And remember any time a criminal or nut case kills dozens of people there are calls for legitimate gun ownership to end. Universal background checks would benefit law abiding gun owners and their right to own a weapon.

    • “… the latest polls show that 90 per cent of Republican voters want universal background checks to help slow down the avalanche of unvetted weapons flowing into the hands…”

      Wrong.

      Once it is explained exactly what those ‘checks’ are, support falls well below 50 percent.

      Keep on repeating your lies, it won’t make them truth…

      • Wrong, the people know exactly what it means, its not rocket science to anyone that has any level of intelligence. It means you are vetted before you can but a weapon, we have had that already for decades with the Brady Bill on the purchase of new guns but not used ones. Really what part of this do you not understand because according to the polls the American public sure understands it.

    • You can’t stop the signal Mal.
      You do not need a 3D printer or a jig to make weapon. I own a large milling machine and several lathes as well as assorted welding and casting equipment. I still have the barrel rifling machine parts we used to make a muzzle loader a few years back and it would be easy to modify it for more modern barrels. Someone with a cheap table top mill and lathe or even a Sherline setup can easily make weapons. If you have plenty of time someone with a drill and a bunch of files can too.

      What are you going to do register all metal working equipment? Maybe station guards at all metal shops?
      Shut down all the plumbing departments in stores? Confiscate our drill bits and files?

      • Making a gun isn’t magic. I guess nobody has been to a shop class in the past 30 years? Oh right, they haven’t.

        https://youtu.be/qTy3uQFsirk

        We dont destroy rights because some people abuse them. We go after the perpetrators or we take measures to protect ourselves and our families.

        • I did go to shop over 50 years ago but still remember one very important lesson we had graphically drilled into our brains. One of the rich kid elites had on a class ring. Not sure how but he managed to get it caught on the chuck of the metal lathe, maybe he was trying to slow it by hand. Anyhow the lesson was degloving and how to not have it happen to you. Never wore a ring around machines after that.

      • My last shop class was in the 8th grade maybe 1975 I guess. Mr Greene kept a fifth of Irish whiskey and a 1911 in his bottom desk drawer.. We all saw it, many times.

        One day Mr Greene pulled over on the side of the road on his way home from school, and put one of those 45’s through his melon.

        It’s not relevant but it’s a true story.

    • Ah yes, the ol’, “100% of all Republicans, libertarians, Democrats, and Green Party members want universial background checks, assault weapon bans, registration and red flag laws” fallacy. Fuck you, and fuck off with your leftist taqiya.

    • Then why haven’t UBC laws easily passed everywhere they’ve been on the ballot, with 100% dem and 90% repub support it should be a slam dunk, but they’ve been defeated in several states and passed by slim margins in others.

      when is 90% not 90%?

      • 90% is NOT 90% when it is actually 23%, which is still optimistically high.. Most of these polls are done in heavy liberal areas and many are then fraudulently identified as conservative… In my world the vote is 99.9999% to .00001% against UBC but then I only know one liberal…..

    • “Latest polls” say whatever the pollster was paid to make them say. What effect will laws have on a criminal who gets his gun from a friend or relative or buys it from another criminal operating out of a car trunk in a back alley after midnight?

    • Those polls are very misleading. It’s a knee jerk response. Once people are educated about the facts support drops precipitously

    • Don’t piss on my leg and tell me you just giving me hydration. Your foot went into your mouth. Tell me how background checks of any kind, universal, warner bros, or walt disney, according to your very own words, guns can be bought anywhere for cash on the barrel head. Is background checks an infringement? In a word yes. And, my political party or lack thereof is nobody’s business, but I am a 2a’er word for word as each are defined by Merriam Webster unabridged dictionary. If everyone would exercise their rights prisons would be a lot emptier. Cemeteries might be a little more crowded but I see that as a plus, win win.

    • “It was revealed on this past Sunday on Global GPS that the latest polls show that 90 per cent of Republican voters want universal background checks”

      Which of course is a lie. And even if it were not, there’s an impediment in the way of your gun control fantasies:

      “the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.”

      The actual FACT is that prior unconstitutional ‘gun control’ laws are the direct cause of all of these mass shootings that we see currently. With each and every unconstitutional ‘gun control’ law crime has risen – NEVER falling. And the areas in the nation with the worst crime rates are those with the most stringent ‘gun control’ laws.

      The lie-beral demonRat party gun control scheme has been a dismal failure since the very beginning. And is directly responsible for the deaths and maiming of tens of thousands of American citizens. Anyone that advances these unconstitutional laws is in fact a domestic enemy, and deserves to be treated accordingly.

    • Vlad ignores the fact that if home made guns are made legal it will still be an optional supply source for felons and nut cases that are barred from owning weapons. If they are willing to break the law by possessing a gun, or even using it to commit a violent crime,
      they will be willing to break another one by making a gun. Its so simple that even a mentally challenged vampire should understand that.

  7. Tell them, SURE, as long as the state can make different rules for each municipality. And make arbitrary financial contributions to each city depending on how much the governor likes the mayor.

  8. When I had a Hipoint to sell a pawnshop I got $75 for it. And it was used. In Gary,Indiana BTW(where’d you think it ended up😄😎😏)?

      • Yeah I saw that but the local “news” went nuts over Po-leece chief Johnson being fired for drunk(and drugged) driving. They even had the azzhole former chief Garry “shotgun” McCarthy blathering on about “corruption”😏Both idiot’s are enemies of the 2nd Amendment so eff ’em. And the NewYork Times had a paywall!

  10. “Technology may advance to the point where you can press a button in the morning and come home from work to a fully functional semi-automatic rifle. ”

    Not may, WILL, and probably inside the next 20 years.

    What are we going to do about it?

  11. Let’s let slide the cost of the required 3D printer. I for one would not be willing to entrust my personal safety to “3$ worth of plastics”, nor would I willingly use such item in any sort of competition that I might enter.

  12. “I don’t see how the ease of completion is relevant. It is, and always has been, legal for ordinary adults to make firearms for their own personal use.]..”
    -Many things were legal before they were made illegal. I expect that if “universal background checks” ever get passed the next push will be against homemade guns.
    “A ban or regulation on home builds would also necessarily infringe on the First Amendment activity of trading designs.”
    -No it doesn’t. The courts have long held that you can ban the manufacture of explosive devices but cannot ban the freedom to distribute information about how to make them.

  13. I have a 4D printer and I just built myself a plasma gun, a laser saber, and a Gatling gun just for fun. They all came out in 4K Ultra HD too, and they take fully semi auto clip magazines. Peace.

  14. Clearly red flag laws have triggered the national movement for 2nd Amendment Sanctuary counties. But the Washington Post already has labeled supporters as mischief makers. Fact is, red flag laws were created to dilute power licensed to the psychiatric community. These laws transfer power to unqualified persons more obedient to democrats, e.g., local judges and crotchety old aunts. Due process requires reports from two psychiatrists, one from each side, legal representation, arraignment, indictment and trial by jury.

    Nobody wants criminals to have firearms but to be taken seriously, if the accused is a danger to himself or others, he should be legally arrested. In other words, take the man but leave the guns. The line of inheritance codified in state laws determines the legal custodian of any property. Politicians on both sides who support this notion will regret the day they ever heard of red flag laws.

    Their legacies will carry a Supreme Court scolding and perhaps be the landmark of their careers. Writers, politicians and demonstrators have been hoodwinked by Bloomberg’s rhetoric and haven’t read his 2018 data. It reveals gun homicides declined seven percent, firearm injuries declined 10 percent, fatal child shootings (under 18) declined 12 percent and unintentional shootings plummeted 21 percent.

    None of this hysteria is justified. Since 1991, the murder rate has fallen by 45 percent and the overall violent crime rate has fallen by 48 percent. It’s bizarre that Bloomberg wants to change all that. Since 1999, the statistical probability of a student being killed in school, on any given day by a gun has been one in 614 million. Your odds of winning the lottery are 1 in 300 million. The chances of your child being kidnapped are about one in 300,000. Bloomberg says the nation is in crisis, suffering an epidemic. Folks, there is no crisis, no epidemic.

    Shooting incidents involving students have been declining since the ’90s. Fact is all but three mass shooters in recent history passed background checks. Two stole their rifles. The other one bought from a guy who assembled it from parts and sold it from home. Murders committed by all types of rifles combined, in 2018, dropped by 23.9 percent. According to the FBI, out of 14,123 homicides in 2018, only 297 (2.1%) were committed by rifles.

    During that time, citizens were buying a record number of firearms. In 2018, more than 26 million requests were submitted to the National Instant Background System, a general indicator of firearms purchased. That number was exceeded only by 27.5 million in 2016 when purchasers were mortified that Hillary might be elected. Democrats want US citizens to believe making the U.S. safer for criminals will make it safer for their victims. Ask yourself, do you believe being disarmed makes you safer? What kind of political leader would disarm his people while howling about the peril they face?

    These laws have not considered all the possible areas they might harm. For example, what if a crotchety old aunt complained about a blustery nephew who also is a Federal Firearms Licensee and established dealer? What if the nephew is a licensee who operates a pawn shop? What if the nephew stores a neighbor’s firearms because his safe is large enough? What about a nephew whose firearms are stored somewhere else? And so on.

    The Supreme Court isn’t about to jeopardize its own reputation by reducing the ability of private citizens to defend themselves. It’s especially important because currently, half the nation’s murders occur in only 63 counties while the other half are spread across the other 3,081 counties. Said another way, 15 percent had one murder and 54 percent of the nation’s counties had no murders at all.

    Besides, they’re sick of our paralyzed congress creating ambiguous laws that ultimately land in the Supreme Court. They know it’s easy to blame the tools used for murder and to write acts that impede acquisition by peaceable, lawful citizens.

    They know it’s far more difficult to focus on the more complex reality of why incomprehensible murderers do what they do. If something is to be done, perhaps it should be focused on the mental defectives, criminals, terrorists and illegal aliens.

  15. Red Flag laws are for countries with RED FLAGS. The version that says you can’t modify your own property (such as when you convert plastic or metal into a gun that won’t fire itself) are no less Fascist.

    I am comforted knowing that tyrants at all levels know how easy it is to make weapons, and how futile to keep them only on their own hands.

  16. The 2nd Amend is a RESTRICTIVE amendment. It states such in the Preamble to Bill of Rights. the 2A does not grant nor convey any right, but RESTRICTS and PROHIBITS the government from infringing upon this enumerated, pre-existing, God given right.
    Our rights, written BEFORE the Constitution, are unalienable and are endowed from our CREATOR – not our legislators, not our government and certainly not from the United Nations and their attempt at gaining control.

    It’s a Trap!
    2nd Amendment Sanctuaries Threaten Gun Rights

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOhdcNR1bK8

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