Judge Fires Up the Block on 3‑D‑Printed Gun Plans
When regulators meet the world of DIY lock‑hardened guns, they’re not always on the same page. This month, a Seattle‑based district judge threw a brick wall in the way of a digital fiasco that could empower any curious teenager to ace their own “ghost gun” workshop.
The Legal Showdown
- Eight states + DC sued the federal government, calling the Trump‑era settlement with Defence Distributed “arbitrary and capricious.”
- President Trump’s team let the company publish a site called Defcad, a “WikiLeaks for homemade firearms.”
- Gov. Rob Lasnik in Seattle handed out a temporary restraining order (but no code blocks), and scheduled a hearing for August 10.
- Attorney General Barbara Underwood declared the ruling a “major victory for public safety.”
- The condemned blueprint lists 10 weapons—ranging from plastic pistols to metal AR‑15 kits—that can be ghost‑printed in a household kit.
Crack‑Up or Crack‑Down?
Think about it: a gun with no serial number, no metal detector trace—it’s like a ghost that just speeds past the safety net. The White House, however, shrugged, showing skepticism over the legality of the project. “It is currently illegal to own or make a purely plastic gun—no 3‑D printers permitted,” the spokesperson said, sounding more like a television advertisement than a court decree.
Wilson Woes & Wows
- Founder Cody Wilson (who dropped out of law school but never dropped his ambition) says the Second Amendment gives everyone the right to build & share. “Let the people do what they want,” he declared, channeling a sort of DIY philosopher.
- Against 21 state attorneys general, he says his mission to spread blueprints is on the protection of free speech. He owns “8!” Actually, he owns more than that—15 staff in a tidy Austin warehouse, producing plastic handguns, tools, and more.
- He has already been through the legal maze: lost cases in district court, lost again in appeals, and the Supreme Court refused to even consider his argu‑ment. Yet he burns with relentless defiance.
Common‑Sense, Panic & UPC (Under Performable Counterproductivity)
Someone called the entire thing “crazy.” “It’s simply insane to give criminals a chance to build untraceable, unbeatable guns at the push of a button,” Underwood said. Wilson counters: “I intend to litigate; American rights must not be muted.”
Why the World Loves the Fear
- Los Angeles police showed us an “AR‑15‑style” kit that criminal gangs had used during a covert operation — a snapshot of the danger of giving anyone a button to construct a killer.
- Experts from the Brady Center see a large global escapade: ghost guns could flourish in countries that have strict gun laws, but a plastic or 3‑D printed weapon would bypass that guard rails.
- “So, in those countries, there are many people who shouldn’t have guns until they get their hands on a 3‑D‑printed gun,” Jonathan Lowy warned. Across the globe, the problem may skyrocket.
