In a significant gun control case, the US Supreme Court will decide whether to uphold President Joe Biden’s regulation requiring background checks and serial numbers for “ghost guns,” following a lower court ruling. The administration’s appeal comes after the high court allowed the rule to remain in effect last August during legal challenges.
The case marks the first gun control issue on the Supreme Court docket for its next term, with crucial decisions on domestic abusers and bump stocks still pending. Ghost guns are untraceable weapons made from kits that bypass standard gun regulations.
Biden argued in 2022 that these weapons are used extensively by criminals and posed a significant threat to public safety. The administration sought to regulate ghost gun manufacturers, requiring them to adhere to the same rules as traditional gunmakers.
A three-judge panel of the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in November that the regulation exceeded the statutory authority of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
The Biden administration maintained its regulation was consistent with existing laws’ plain meaning, arguing that it only addressed the definition of firearms. The Justice Department also stated that the panel’s interpretation would make it easy to circumvent the law and flood the market with untraceable ghost guns.
The gun control case comes as nearly 14,000 suspected ghost guns were reported to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in just five months last year. Over 80% of these weapons traced back to Polymer80, one of the companies challenging the regulation.
Gun control advocates argued that ghost guns presented a dangerous loophole, as they are frequently found at crime scenes. Advocacy groups and gun owners sued the administration, alleging the definition of “firearm” had long been interpreted to describe only actual or finished frames and receivers.
The 5th Circuit’s decision against the regulation forced companies like Polymer80 to “brace for economic destruction,” according to their lawyers. These businesses argued that the law would soon destroy an entire field of traditionally lawful Second Amendment business activity unless it was repealed.
The Supreme Court agreed on Monday, June 6, to review the case, with a decision expected after the presidential election in November. This marks the first time the high court will consider the constitutionality and legality of Biden’s regulation on ghost guns.
As the gun control debate continues, both sides await the Supreme Court’s decision on this critical case, which could significantly impact the future of untraceable weapons in the United States.
