The state of Connecticut sued four gun parts companies claiming that these businesses shipped 80% AR-15 lower receivers to customers in the state.
Connecticut bans unsterilized receivers, which it calls “ghost guns.” Law enforcement authorities set up a sting operation, purchasing gun parts online through the companies’ websites to see if they would ship the parts into the state. The companies targeted by the operation include Indie Guns, Steel Fox Firearms, Hell Fire Armory, and AR Industries. It isn’t clear how many attempted buys state authorities tried and failed to do or the other companies that were targeted.
“Ghost guns are an untraceable menace that exists for one reason — to evade law enforcement and registration,” Connecticut Attorney General William Tong said in the suit. “They are a threat to public safety, and they are illegal in Connecticut.”
This lawsuit comes on the heels of similar lawsuits filed across the country. New York City filed one of the first suits targeting multiple gun parts companies. The city offered to settle with the companies if they turned over customer data to the city.
Although some companies, such as Indie Guns, refused the deal, others, like Rainer Arms, did turn over the customer data to the city. Other cities and states took note of the Big Apple’s success and followed its lead. Cities such as Buffalo and San Francisco have launched their own suits against many of the same companies as Connecticut.
The civil lawsuit claims the companies violated Connecticut’s state consumer protection laws. The companies are facing a fine of $5000 per violation. Tong also stated the companies also violated the state’s 2019 criminal code that banned the sale of unsterilized frames and receivers. The Attorney General stopped short of threatening criminal prosecution against the name companies.
Anti-gun groups claim that “ghost guns” are leading to an epidemic of “gun violence” across the country. Privately manufactured firearms (PMF) only make up a small percentage of guns used in crimes. Further muddying the waters is that most statistics group 80% of firearms with guns with serial numbers removed by filing or other methods.
Anti-gun groups and politicians have started using lawsuits to try to bankrupt gun companies and get customers’ personally identifiable information. Recently the Brady United anti-gun group launched a course teaching lawyers how to successfully sue gun companies despite the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) which is supposed to protect companies from frivolous lawsuits. Activist judges have also ignored the PLCAA and let cases continue.
The state has not offered a settlement to the companies yet, but if the suit follows the patterns of the other cases, the state will ask for customer data to act against buyers of the products that live in Connecticut. One company, Indie Guns, is on the record stating that the company will never turn over any customer data. Indie Guns has been named in multiple suits in New York for shipping gun parts to the Empire States.
Connecticut has not offered a settlement to any companies as of this writing.
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.
No one is safe from the Police State. Such stings only snare good guys trying to save a buck, or engage in DIY gunsmithing as a hobby. Gangs and criminal elements buy guns off the street or steal them. They dont waste time trying to build them, when their 8 hour day is better spent selling dope and jacking cars.
The true intent is to bankrupt these small companies.
looks like i will be deleting my account with ranier now that i read that they gave up customer info to government agents. oh well.
It’s a damn shame too. Rainier Arms is a codefendant in several big 2A lawsuits out here in Washington State. I’ve bought stuff from their Auburn, Washington big boys store!
This sucks, a snitch is a lowlife form. Damn, just damn.
Sounds like ALL gunz and gunz partz and ammunition manufacturers need to band together to form a loose consortium, such that when any Gooberment threatens lawsuit against any one gunz manufacturer, ALL gunz and ammunition manufacturers react. (for example purposes only) (Remington) “Connecticut, you want to sue these companies for making parts that are safe, but don’t meet with your approval? Because “reasons”? Don’t send us your gunz for repair, we won’t repair them for you. Neither will any other major manufacturer or repair company. Neither will anyone sell gunz or ammunition to you. Remember what happened to California when… Read more »
I’ve been saying / posting this same thought for years. Why does any gun related company or organization (looking at you sport shooters) do any business in or with these states.
“Only reason for ‘ghost guns’ is to evade background checks and registry.”
Yeah – so what’s your point? Are good people supposed to surrender all privacy simply because you are offended? Will you next claim that we need governmental surveillance camera’s in everyone’s bedroom to watch for illegal sex acts? You may believe it is worth it if it saves just one child from a pedophilic predator – which to me makes it more justified than registering firearms! However … more justification is still pretty much no justification, and absolutely not sufficient justification (that’s unachievable).
Sounds like the crime was born in the mind of the Conn. police agency. Classic entrapment.
It reeks of entrapment WB.
What are these “unsterilized” receivers? Not germ free?
As most are anodized and the final step in anodizing is immersion in boiling water, they should be close to sterilized. At least until a person handles them.
Or did you mean to say “unserialized”?
Autocorrect strikes again!
the “unsterilised” receivers are the ones that are NOT shipped with masks. Nor have they endured the poke in the arm.
So once the ATF looses against the new frame/receiver rule these will again be chunks of metal and the case will go away, right?
I recently purchased from a reputable non-ferrous metal supplier a stick of aluminium, two inch by thee inch, and twenty feet long. Let’s see, that length should supply enough for somewhere between forty five and fifty AR 15 lowers….
Will BATF come nipping round and arrest me for “constructive firearms possession”?
Eedjits.
This sort of action is a clear violation of the “interstate commerce clause” of the US Constitution. Tie to hold the feet of some of these judges to the fire and force them to find FOR the defendants and make the moving parties pay ALL legal costs incurred to defend gainst this tyranny. a
And just HOW does one measure out what is 80% of anything, outside of using a ruler, weight scale, torque wrench, thermometer, electrical meter, pressure gauge or some other physical means? Who can say what is less than 80% and what is more than 80% and do it with 100% accuracy?? When I measure a part with my digital electronic calipers, I can compare the reading to an agreed upon standard, how does one do that by eyeball? Who came up with “80%” being some kind of standard of anything anyway?? How did they envision being able to measure that… Read more »
I like your line of thought here. I have also wondered just how “they” determine that 80% is the magic number. What if a part is made 79.9% complete? Round-up? Ok then, what if the part is 79.4% complete? Is a 75% part just as illegal as an 80% part, even though it’s less than 94% of an 80% part? In other words, if the common state of an 80% receiver/frame sold today was modified to require the builder to drill 1 more hole and/or remove a more material, wouldn’t that make it less than today’s 80% and therefore no… Read more »
AGAIN, The instigators of these FRIVOLOUS LAWSUITS MUST be PERSONALLY RESPONSIBLE for ALL costs of the Court, Lawyer, Time lost from work and Emotional Distress. These lawsuits MUST BE THROWN OUT OF COURT! The SCOTUS’ Bruen case makes all of these maneuvers by these COMMUNISTIC CONTROLLERS UNCONSTITUTIONAL!!
EVERY man or woman who gets sucked into the meat grinding maw of the legal system needs to demand to see it in writing that they will actually GET a fair trial! If they don’t see that guarantee, and can read it for themselves, then they’re being duped by the legal system, and that itself is a crime because they are being injured/damaged by the legal system! But no scumbag LIEyer will ever admit to that fact, because it’s how they make their living!!
“…if they turned over customer data to the city.”
These poIiticians are pIaying with dynamite and they don’t have a cIue.
All of my receivers have been sterilized.
Another ATF classification invention to enforce…sterialized.
Sterilization prevents unwanted, illegitimate firearm “accidents”.
What is just oh so painfully obvious, or at least is obvious to those who are willing to look, is that the 100% corrupted and criminal legal system has ZERO power or authority over any man or woman, because NO man or woman has the right to commit ANY kind of a crime! And that goes doubly for when someone is committing the crime of trying to entrap someone!! It’s called fraud, because one of the definitions of fraud, is non-full disclosure of ALL known and relevant facts of a matter! The ATF is creating a false scenario of them… Read more »
Indie guns is also being sued by New York State. NY had offered to settle if IG simply turns over customer records so the state can persecute them.
The owners of IG have been reaching out to any and everyone for help. Numerous companies have told them to shut up and go along with the government. IG has also been threatened if they dare expose who told them to shut up. Attempts to contact prominent 2A influencers have received no response.
Ammoland, do you have the balls to take this story on??
https://youtu.be/wyIzUkRzT_Q
https://youtu.be/tBY-dwxwv8M