In a highly anticipated resolution, the US Supreme Court has once again sided with Biden’s administration on the controversial issue of “ghost guns” – unregistered and untraceable firearms, often assembled from parts purchased in kits. Ghost guns present a critical challenge in crime-solving due to their anonymous nature and unrestricted transaction dynamics. Back in 2022, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) had proceeded to enforce federal firearm laws, requiring, for instance, background checks for purchases and imposing record-keeping obligations on ghost guns.
However, a ruling by a federal judge in Texas, U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor, had barred the ATF from enforcing this rule, prompting the Biden Administration to appeal to the Supreme Court. In August 2023, with a 5-4 vote, the Supreme Court granted the government’s request to enforce the rule while litigation proceeded in the lower courts. Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, and Brett Kavanaugh expressed dissent, but the rule stood reinstated.
The challengers, Blackhawk Manufacturing and Defense Distributed, resorted to the district court, resulting in an injunction that barred the enforcement of the rule against their operations. The 5th Circuit Court supported this order. Nonetheless, the justices at the Supreme Court were unanimous in their decision to vacate O’Connor’s order.
As reported by SCOTUSblog, it gives the Biden administration the green light to enforce the rule against Blackhawk and Defense Distributed for now. This is not the first time U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar has urged the court to uphold the ATF’s rule. Fully backed by the new administration, the regulation faced serious challenges in various stages of the legal process but has held firm. As Justice Prelogar put it, the decision was an “authoritative determination that the government should be allowed to implement the Rule during appellate proceedings.”
The complexities of such lawsuits, as well as the socio-political implications entangled with them, require profound deliberation and timely updates. This article was originally published on Howe on the Court.