Justin Ervin and YouTube Star Matt Hoover, better known as CRS Firearms, are on trial for selling a metal card with a picture inspired by a lighting link etched on it. Mr. Ervin owned the company that produced the product, known as the Autokey Card, and Mr. Hoover was contracted to promote the novelty item through his YouTube channel.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) claimed that the Autokey Card was a machine gun. Under federal law, any item that can convert a semi-automatic rifle to a machine gun is itself a machine gun. The federal government saw the Autokey Card as a stencil and claimed that it is a machine gun, but documents uncovered by a Gun Owners of America Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request show that the ATF doesn’t consider stencils to be regulated items.
The first piece of evidence is an ATF criminal examination of a Napa fuel filter, a muzzle device, freezer plugs, and a plastic drill guide that inserts into the freezer plugs. The owner was going to use these items to create a suppressor. The ATF examined these items and determined them not to be a suppressor. Suppressors are regulated under the National Firearms Act (NFA), just like machine guns.
In the Autokey Card case, the government argues that the item is a machine gun because it has what they allege is a stencil. The ATF’s own criminal examination letter seems to disagree with the government’s case.
The second letter that GOA gave to AmmoLand News shows that ATF’s Firearms and Ammunitions Technology Division (FATD) doesn’t consider a lightning link to be a machine gun unless both parts are present. A lighting link consists of two parts. The letter shows the more significant portion of the item was examined. If both parts must be present and formed to the correct size, as the ATF stated in previous documents, how can the federal government charge the two men with selling machine guns?
The letter shows an agency with an almost schizophrenic approach to classifying items. The problem is that the ATF relies on a holistic approach to classifying things. There are no set standards. For example, the ATF will not say how much area on the back of a pistol brace turns that item into a stock. The Bureau relies on a “you know it when you see it” interpretation of rules and regulations, which leads to uncertainty because even the ATF’s trained examiners cannot agree on the classification of items.
One of Matt Hoover’s frequent collaborators Richard Hughes, known on YouTube as FlyingRichFirearms, thinks the ATF’s persecution of the men is egregious and unjust.
“Firstly, the ATF’s enforcement practices have been overly aggressive, often resulting in undue hardship and harm to law-abiding citizens and businesses,” Mr. Hughes told AmmoLand news. “The agency’s heavy-handed approach, including aggressive raids and seizures, has been known to disproportionately impact innocent individuals and legitimate businesses, creating unnecessary disruption and damage.”
“Furthermore, the ATF’s inconsistent interpretation and application of regulations and laws have caused confusion and uncertainty for firearms owners and industry members,” Mr. Hughes continued. “The lack of clear guidance and inconsistency in regulatory enforcement has resulted in unnecessary burdens, legal battles, and unwarranted penalties for law-abiding citizens.”
This uncertainty has real-world effects. Mr. Ervin and Mr. Hoover are looking at lengthy prison sentences even though it seems that some ATF employees would agree that the men did nothing wrong. The greatest travesty is for Hoover, who never sold a single Autokey Card and just advertised it on his popular YouTube channel. Mr. Hoover has maintained that he spoke to his local ATF field office before taking the sponsorship, and they assured him the product was legal. Mr. Hoover made these claims long before the ATF arrested him or Mr. Ervin.
Mr. Hoover and Mr. Ervin are currently on trial in federal court in Jacksonville, Florida. Both men maintain their innocence.
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.
I have never wanted a device to turn my rifle into an automatic rifle. I prefer to miss the bullseye slowly, rather than quickly. But, if these men win their case, I plan to buy a dozen or so of their AutoKeyCards, and hand them out to everyone I meet who owns an AR-15. It is CRUCIAL that Republicans win the presidency in 2024, because that president will again appoint 3 justices, and could change the court. If that court remains conservative, I expect we will end up with case law that allows people to buy new machine guns (albeit… Read more »
When will the people realize that our lives should not be determined by 9 people in black robes. It should be determined by COMMON LAW and that means simply DO NO HARM. I don’t give a flying rats ass what anyone thinks they can do or not do. When they commit CRIMES AGAINST THE PEOPLE they are the criminals. They should be dealt with as criminals and if it means vigilante justice then it means vigilante justice. The only way ANY of this horseshit makes the least bit of difference is that some ENFORCERS of it enforce it. THEY are… Read more »
I understand your sentiment, but I much prefer the thought that we obey the U.S. Constitution, rather than the much more ethereal common law. That common law is hard to define and different people may have different ideas of what it means, while the Constitution is a very definite and solid document that has well defined boundaries, that if could only be followed would serve the nation quite well. The fact that a well defined document has shown to be so hard to follow only points out the difficulty in following a common law ideal, which on the outside seems… Read more »
The ATF is a rogue agency that enforces made up laws that are blatantly unconstitutional. Time to disband this bunch of Marxist clowns .
Do they also want to ban and burn books where these images can be seen?
I thought this to be complete BS and donated to them to fight the overruling ATF. Hopefully one day the ATF and NFA is nothing more than history lesson like prohibition that started all this anti constitutional sh!t show.
they wouldn’t have this problem if they just adhered to the law of the land, the Constitution and Bill of Rights. case closed. batfe and most of the other alphabet federal government; hell, state and local government agencies also, could be done away with with little to no problem for the citizens of America. the bloated government employee payroll and benefit packages is a huge burden on taxpayers, they are essential welfare recipients. look at any government agency and see if it runs as smoothly as a privately owned business, e.g. the va, the dmv, social security office, any public… Read more »
This WHY they don’t listen to us anymore. There Is A Reason “They” Don’t Listen to Us Anymore
TYRANNY…..“you know it when you see it”
This is the government our Founders warned about…..and, for which they penned the Second Amendment.
Fawak Yeah! What Crumpy said!
You said it Chippah!
And why are you flying Rich? Did you win the lotto or sumptin?
Thank you Mr. Crump, another great Ammoland informative article. I especially like the GOA video you attached. I decided to become a monthly donor to GOA. Enough, already.
I’ve a got a comment directly for the ammoland editors… It is time to eliminate your comments section… You have some wackos on here bullying people and chasing off, not only readers, but donors… Just get rid of it altogether… This is a magnet for sophisticated antigun propaganda, etc…
The experience here would go from negative to positive very quickly as your articles are generally enlightened and informative. There is no reason to have something that allows sociopathic bullies and propagandists to have a voice here.