New York Sues Multiple Companies Over Privately Made Firearms

3D Printed Ghost Guns
FPC Sue State Department For Records About ‘3-D’ Gun Blueprints

NEW YORK, NY -(Ammoland.com)- New York state has filed suit against a slew of firearms retailers for selling unfinished frames and receivers.

New York State Attorney General Letitia James announced the lawsuit at a press conference in New York City. The lawsuit claims that these online firearms retailers are causing a public nuance by selling what she refers to as “ghost guns” to residents of the Empire State. The retailers include Arms or Ally LLC, Black Hawk Manufacturing Group, Inc., 80 Precent Arms Inc., 80P Freedom Co., Brownells, the Glock Store, Indie Guns, KM Tactical, Primary Arms, Rainer Arms, and RockSlideUSA.

The tactic of suing companies in the 80% business is not new but has been gaining steam across the country, backed up by anti-gun politicians and anti-gun groups such as Everytown and Giffords. California has sued Ghost Gunner and several other companies. Baltimore recently teamed up with Brady United to sue Polymer80, accusing the company of being a public nuance and causing a public health crisis.

In this case, New York State alleges that it was able to determine that these companies shipped 80% firearms kits into the State. It claims that these companies broke a recently passed state law by sending the 80% kits into the State. The lawsuit claims that some of the recipients of the products in question were prohibited from owning guns and had “[l]ong rap sheet history.”

The lawsuit also claims that the defendants broke federal law by selling these kits by implying these items are firearms. It highlights that the frames are not serialized, and buyers do not have to undergo a background check. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has never claimed unfinished frames and receivers are firearms. The ATF’s final rule on privately made firearms (PMF) is due to take effect in late August unless one of several challenges is successful in blocking the new regulation. It appears that New York might be applying the new rule now.

New York is demanding that the named companies stop selling the kits to anyone with a New York address or who might transport the kits into the state.

The state wants the companies to pay restitution to the state for violating state law and divest from any profits made from the sale of the kits. AG James also demands that the targeted companies pay all the legal fees associated with the case.

Most chillingly, the New York State AG demands that the named companies turn over all customer records for patrons living in New York State and who purchased an unfinished frame or receiver within the past five years. New York State laws against these items are not five years old, leading many gun rights advocates to wonder what the State will do with the information if the court orders the targeted companies to turn over all the customer records to an anti-gun AG.

None of the affected companies that AmmoLand News contacted agreed to comment on the new lawsuit. Most of the attorneys for the defendants have not had time to review the cases. One company that did speak to AmmoLand News, off the record, believes that New York State is using the legal system to bankrupt the companies.


About John Crump

John is a NRA instructor and a constitutional activist. John has written about firearms, interviewed people of all walks of life, and on the Constitution. John lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and sons and can be followed on Twitter at @crumpyss, or at www.crumpy.com.

John Crump

John Crump
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Trussman

I find it odd that they will not tell us how many 80% kit guns, so-called “ghost guns” were actually recovered at a crime scene or seized from criminals vs how many guns were used / recovered, that had their serial numbers removed. They are lumping the 2 together to increase the numbers, creating mis-information about home-built firearms, to fit their narrative. The government isn’t interested in stopping crime / punishing criminals, they’re interested in CONTROL. If they were interested in stopping crime, they’d go back to what worked before all this woke bulls**t started. Most of the 80% kits… Read more »

MP71

The anti gunners are lumping in commercially made guns with defaced serial numbers to exaggerate the “Ghost Gun epidemic”.

swmft

need to find a state aG THAT WILL FILE TITLE 18 242 ACTION stop this bs what new york ag is doing is illegal and she should be checked by law , these government things have been getting away with malicious bs too long
and without some having examples made of them it wont stop

Last edited 1 year ago by swmft
swmft

each should apply for a change of venue to their own district

Roverray

How can you sue a company if they are not doing anything illegal? Counter sue the shit of them! Do they have proof these companies shipped kit to NY after they passed the law? And the really stupid one, you purchase a unfinished frame from another state and have intent to sell to someone in NY. They must put something in the water up there.

TGP389

I concur, but the reality of the situation is that the socialist government in New York (substitute Oregon, Washington, California, etc) are suing using other people’s money, ie, the taxpayers. The attorneys are tax paid government attorneys and if countersued successfully, the taxpayers will have to pony up for the award to the plaintiffs. This creates a situation where there is incentive for the socialist states to sue (the damage to the gun industry) but no disincentive if they are countersued. That doesn’t mean we should not fight back, only that there should be some way to legally penalize these… Read more »

Last edited 1 year ago by TGP389
willyd

N.Y. just doesn’t want to give up their regulations against law abiding citizans, they will keep pushing the envelope of the PRIVLAGED!!!!!!!!!

john

NYS will keep the courts busy while they put together another anti gun claim. As there intentions are to win small victories incompanased in their new legislations.
Sue the state for a huge sum of money if possible and if there is no wrongdoing by the company’s to keep hammering away cost money taken from profits.
Electing new fresh leadership that act within the law would be welcome and would spell victory for everyone. One day New Yorkers will awake to the reality that they have no freedom at all.

john

Hello Remember the democrats are playing the word game and are very good at this. Democrats Caught Blatantly Redefining Words To Fit Their NarrativeWashington, D.C.: Leftist apologists have swooped to Biden’s defense this week, insisting that when the president says “bipartisan support” (in the case of infrastructure and gun control measures), he doesn’t mean Republicans in Congress or other elected office. Rather, he is referring to general support from Republican voters. They’re quite literally trying to convince people of new definitions of words to suit their needs.  “President Biden’s so-called unity agenda is a complete fiction,” said Ed Martin, president of… Read more »

Arny

And just how do they plan on stopping a 3 D printer ? lol

DonP

“public nuance”???

I think your spell check decided to attack. The term is ‘public nuisance’.

WeWereWarned

It wasn’t a typo, it was Ebonics, since this whole article is about punishing people and lowering our rights because of black and brown violence. You can’t call violent third world communities a public nuisance, since the truth is now racist, that is why they are blaming our guns. Conservatives expand the government over the minority violence, instead of letting the private sector pacify them, like older folks were allowed.

Older folks have forced us to lower our rights to be equal, and that is why we have had to lower our educational standards as well.

Last edited 1 year ago by WeWereWarned
Orion

you blame older folks for the downturn? lol…. we’re the ones upholding the proper standards for civility and justice. try again.

StLPro2A

Those companies should hire Hillary as their “wipe on-wipe off” consultant.

james

Without merit. More frivolous lawsuits that will drain the resources from legal and legitimate companies. Right out of the Bloomberg playbook.

john

Liberals have hijacked many words. For example, the word gay originally meant feelings of being “carefree,” “happy” or “bright and showy.” Now the most commonly accepted use of the word gay primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term illegal immigration is no longer politically acceptable because it might reflect negatively upon some poor, misunderstood “migrant” who entered the United States illegally seeking a better life. The liberal left now identifies them as undocumented immigrants, and sometimes called unregistered Democrats. Even the concept and word “taxes” has not gone unchanged. The government now prefers… Read more »

john

NYS Government in the hands of the enemy as is California’s government what we are bearing witness to is the removal capitalism. Using guns & violence to sell headlines which provokes the 13% of the woke minority. This group the 13% are allowed to rise up without fearing the rule of law. The new image of the democratic party Transgender gay racist criminals illigals drug dealers antifa black lives matter baby killing hollywood elitist liberal left wing flat earthers who all hate what our country stands for. For now that 13% is well protected by the elite and the media… Read more »

JDT

Easy to destroy them from within…If you see me dressed in drag raising hell in the streets just know I’m undercover!

john

Thanks for the Laugh

Jaque

I guess the Commerce Clause only applies to the Communists

https://www.everycrsreport.com/reports/RL32844.html

Russn8r

If Ammoland is in bed with the enemy, why did they let you post that?