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u.s. news Diamars 12 aPriL 2022

Biden aims at ‘ghost gun’ violence with new federal rule

(AP) — President Joe years to require serial num-
Biden on Monday took bers to be stamped on ghost
fresh aim at ghost guns, guns. Pennsylvania Attorney
the privately made fire- General Josh Shapiro, who
arms without serial num- was attending Monday’s
bers that are increasingly event at the White House,
cropping up in violent applauded the move and
crimes, as he struggles to pointed to a serious uptick
break past gun-control in ghost guns being found by
opposition to address fire- police. Police in Philadelphia
arm deaths. have seen nearly a 500% in-
crease in the number of ghost
Speaking at the White House, guns recovered in the past
Biden highlighted the Justice two years, Shapiro said. And
Department’s work to final- just last week, a police offi-
ize new regulations to crack cer there was shot by a ghost
down on ghost guns, and an- gun-wielding 18-year-old,
nounced the nomination of who police said had also shot
Steve Dettelbach, who served three others.
as a U.S. attorney in Ohio
from 2009 to 2016, to run the “This loophole has caused
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, our nation countless lives,”
Firearms and Explosives. Shapiro said in an interview.
“Today is a critically impor-
“Law enforcement is sound- tant step to close that loop-
ing the alarm,” Biden said hole.”
of ghost guns, briefly hold-
ing one up for cameras to see He said the move is likely to
in the Rose Garden. “Our help drive down violence and
communities are paying the struggle. Jones was acting di- individual parts, kits, or by aid both police and prosecu-
price.” rector when President Barack “Ghost guns look like a gun, 3D-printers. tors in bringing their cases.
Obama nominated him in they shoot like a gun, and The rule is also likely to help
He promised the new regula- January 2013. they kill like a gun, but up Federally licensed firearms bring down the number of
tions would save lives. until now they haven’t been dealers must retain key re- people who shouldn’t be
The Biden administration’s regulated like a gun,” said cords until they shut down purchasing firearms before a
Still, the announcement on plan on guns was first report- John Feinblatt, Everytown’s their business or licensed gun lands in their hand, he
guns highlights the limits of ed by Politico. president. activity and then transfer the said.
Biden’s influence to push a records to ATF as they are “There are two challenges:
sweeping congressional over- For nearly a year, the ghost Christian Heyne, the vice currently required to do at One, criminals can easily buy
haul of the nation’s firearm gun rule has been making president of policy at Brady, the end of licensed activity. them without going through
laws in response to both a its way through the federal another gun control group, Previously, these dealers were a background check. And
recent surge in violent crime regulation process. Gun safe- said Dettelbach was “an un- permitted to destroy most re- two, they are unserialized
and continued mass shoot- ty groups and Democrats in impeachable public servant cords after 20 years, making and untraceable.”
ings. Congress has dead- Congress have been pushing who has spent a career using it harder for law enforcement
locked on legislative propos- for the Justice Department the levers of government to to trace firearms found at The critical component in
als to reform gun laws for a to finish the rule for months. hold negligent or nefarious crime scenes. building an untraceable gun
decade, and executive actions It will probably be met with actors accountable.” is what is known as the low-
have faced stiff headwinds in heavy resistance from gun “A year ago this week stand- er receiver, a part typically
federal courts — even as the groups and draw litigation in Justice Department statistics ing here with many of you, I made of metal or polymer.
Democratic base has grown the coming weeks. show that nearly 24,000 ghost instructed the attorney gen- An unfinished receiver —
more vocal in calling on guns were recovered by law eral to write a regulation that sometimes referred to as an
Biden to take more conse- Gun Owners of America enforcement at crime scenes would rein in the prolifera- “80-percent receiver” — can
quential action. vowed that it would immedi- and reported to the govern- tion of ghost guns because I be legally bought online with
ately fight the rule. ment from 2016 to 2020. It is was having trouble getting no serial numbers or other
Dettelbach’s confirmation, hard to say how many are cir- anything passed in the Con- markings on it, no license re-
too, is likely to be an uphill “Just as we opposed the culating on the streets, in part gress,” Biden said. quired.
battle. Biden had to withdraw Trump Administration’s ar- because in many cases police
the nomination of his first bitrary ban on bump stocks, departments don’t contact The rule goes into effect 120 Police across the country
ATF nominee, gun-control GOA will also sue Biden’s the government about the days from the date of publi- have been reporting spikes
advocate David Chipman, ATF to halt the implemen- guns because they can’t be cation in the Federal Register. in ghost guns being recov-
after it stalled for months be- tation of this rule,” Aidan traced. ered by officers. The New
cause of opposition from Re- Johnston, the group’s direc- For years, federal officials York Police Department, for
publicans and some Demo- tor of federal affairs said in The new rule changes the have been sounding the example, said officers found
crats in the Senate. a statement. The group be- current definition of a fire- alarm about an increasing 131 firearms without serial
lieves the rule violates the arm under federal law to in- black market for homemade, numbers since January.
Both Republican and Demo- U.S. Constitution and sev- clude unfinished parts, like military-style semi-auto-
cratic administrations have eral federal laws. the frame of a handgun or the matic rifles and handguns. A gunman who killed his wife
failed to get nominees for receiver of a long gun. It says As well as turning up more and four others in Northern
the ATF position through But gun safety advocacy those parts must be licensed frequently at crime scenes, California in 2017 had been
the politically fraught pro- groups, like Everytown for and include serial numbers. ghost guns have been in- prohibited from owning fire-
cess since the director’s po- Gun Safety, which pushed Manufacturers must also run creasingly encountered when arms, but he built his own to
sition was made confirmable the federal government for background checks before a federal agents buy guns in skirt the court order before
in 2006. Since then, only years to take action on ghost sale — as they do with other undercover operations from his rampage. And in 2019, a
one nominee, former U.S. guns, applauded Biden’s commercially made firearms. gang members and other teenager used a homemade
Attorney B. Todd Jones, has moves and insisted that both The requirement applies re- criminals. handgun to fatally shoot two
been confirmed. Jones made Dettelbach’s appointment gardless of how the firearm classmates and wound three
it through the Senate in 2013 and the finalized rule will was made, meaning it in- Some states, like California, others at a school in subur-
but only after a six-month help combat gun violence. cludes ghost guns made from have enacted laws in recent ban Los Angeles.