The Supreme Court is hearing arguments today on whether Biden Administration rules regulating kits for the home assembly of guns should be reversed. The final product of the kits, so-called ghost guns, have been on the radar of law enforcement recently and have been used in crimes in the United States, with one former manufacturer even making the top ten of the most used weapons in a 2023 analysis of 34 cities by Everytown Research.
The plaintiffs in the case, who are pro-gun groups, kit manufacturers and gun owners, allege that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is overstepping its powers by mandating so-called ghost guns need to have serial numbers and be subject to background checks and that the rules in place since 2022 are unjustly overextending the definition of the term firearm. A lower court sided with the groups bringing the case and the Supreme Court agreed to hear it back in April.
The U.S. Department of Justice said in 2022 that privately made firearms, or ghost guns, “are especially attractive to dangerous and prohibited persons because of their untraceable nature.” Everytown Research in their 2023 analysis meanwhile states that guns originating from now-defunct kit manufacturer Polymer80 made up 1.5 percent of recovered crime guns in 34 queried cities—enough for rank 7 among the very fractured set of manufacturers. Polymer80, whose name refers to the 80%-ready kits it used to sell, ceased operations in July among mounting legal costs. Previously, it had been the leading manufacturer of the kits and parts in question.
Apart from those unable to pass background checks and those planning to use a gun illegally, ghost gun kits also appeal to minors who cannot legally purchase guns. Cases of death and injury including minors and ghost guns have made the news in recent years, including teenagers and minors as young as 12 years old accidentally injuring or killing themselves or other with ghost guns. But the guns have also been used in homicides and violent attacks by adults over the years.
Regulations Slowed The Spread Of Ghost Guns
The new regulations came at a time when the spread of ghost guns had proliferated in the country. According to the Department of Justice, more than 28,000 ghost guns were recovered by the government in 2022, up from just over 1,700 in 2016. While there are indications from several cities that the spread has slowed since the new rules have been in place, a Supreme Court decision in favor of ghost guns could reverse this trend again. Everytown Research also found that even more Polymer80 guns were used in crimes in 2022 than in 2023. While the latter year saw 670 such reports across 28 continuously reporting cities, the previous one had counted 933. No countrywide figures have been released for the past year.
Additionally, regulation on the state level also slowed the further spread of ghost guns. As of October 2024, 15 states including New York, California, Massachusetts, Illinois and Nevada—where Polymer80 was headquartered—have adopted rules saying that ghost gun kits must the subject to the same regulation as other firearms, i.e. serial numbers and background checks. Some states additionally banned undetectable plastic guns and 3D-printed guns.
Charted by Statista
