This is good news for American hobbyists who enjoy constructing their own firearms. And despite the bellowing of anti-gun radicals, it can be safely said that violent criminals are not busy constructing hobby guns from kits in their free time.
Two companies are now protected against enforcement of the controversial regulation. Defense Distributed is the manufacturer of the Ghost Gunner and Blackhawk Manufacturing Group, Inc. does business as 80 Percent Arms.
Both took legal action against the federal agency for what they saw was overstepping its authority over a hobby that has been enjoyed for centuries.
The injunctions came in VanDerStok v. Garland, which has been working its way through Texas courts for more than a year. The suit challenged the ATF’s power to regulate unfinished gun parts as though they were actual weapons themselves.
It was 2021 when President Joe Biden (D) instructed the ATF to formulate rules governing what he labeled as “ghost guns.” Second Amendment critics blasted gun kits as the handiwork of criminals, ignoring the rich tradition of privately built firearms.
In August of 2022, several entities joined together to file suit against the ATF for what they believed was the agency’s overreach into a perfectly legal hobby.
Critics, of course, blasted the legal effort. They created the term “ghost gun loophole” to stir hysteria that these unfinished frames and receivers were a plague attacking innocent citizens. In their minds, the ATF did not overreach nearly far enough.
Not surprisingly, the ATF gave in. Last December, the agency issued a public letter stretching the new rule to cover all unfinished frames. This launched a winding road of litigation.
Judge O’Connor, ruling for the U.S. District Court of Northern Texas, then issued his first injunction. This was widely celebrated by gun rights advocates.
Second Amendment Foundation founder and executive vice president Alan Gottlieb called the preliminary injunction “a huge victory.” He added that “the court’s preliminary determination is pretty straightforward, and it notes that SAF and Defense Distributed are likely to succeed on the merits of their case against the receiver rule.”
Adam Kraut, SAF’s executive director, said the organization is “pleased with the Court’s ruling, which correctly finds we are likely to succeed on our claims. Judge O’Connor agrees that ATF’s Final Rule expanding the agency’s authority over parts that may be ‘readily converted’ into frames or receivers…surpasses the authority granted by Congress.”
Kraut further observed that O’Connor specifically agreed that the ATF unlawfully classified parts kits as completed firearms.
However, the Justice Department quickly appealed to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Most of the rule remained vacated, and the DOJ then appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court through a writ of certiorari, which petitioned the high court to hear the case. The DOJ received the stay it requested.
This led to the plaintiffs seeking a new emergency preliminary injunction. For a second time on Friday, Judge O’Connor granted the companies protection from the ATF’s Final Rule. Despite the legal wrangling of the DOJ, O’Connor again determined that the plaintiffs will likely succeed on the merits of their case. He further found that they would suffer irreparable harm if the rule were to remain intact.
This is yet another gun control case that appears destined for a final decision from the U.S. Supreme Court. Once again, gun control radicals within the federal government must be fought at every judicial level. With any luck, the Second Amendment will be the ultimate winner.
