Latest news with #NationalFirearmsAct
Yahoo
17 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Washington sues federal government to block distribution of forced reset triggers
Jun. 9—Washington has joined 14 other states and the District of Columbia in challenging a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives plan to return seized "forced reset triggers," a device the Washington Attorney General's office says allows novice shooters to "achieve the firepower of a military machine gun." "Communities are less safe with these mass-shooting devices in circulation," Washington Attorney General Nick Brown said in a statement Monday. "Essentially deregulating them is another example of (the Trump Administration) being driven by extreme ideology rather than commonsense." The lawsuit follows a settlement by the Department of Justice, which announced in May it would resolve a case that challenged the ATF designation of the device as "machine guns." "This Department of Justice believes that the 2nd Amendment is not a second-class right," Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement announcing the settlement. "And we are glad to end a needless cycle of litigation with a settlement that will enhance public safety." The device allows an operator to fire their weapon in quicker succession by mechanically resetting the trigger after each shot. Washington law bans machine guns, as well as any "mechanism or instrument" that does not require the trigger to be pulled for each shot. Federal law similarly bans the possession of machine guns. According to the complaint, at least 100,000 of the devices have been sold throughout the country. "A forced reset trigger uses a spring assist in shoving the trigger shoe back forward, resetting the trigger," said Jeremy Ball, owner of Sharpshooting Indoor Range and Gun Shop. "A forced reset trigger does not change the mechanical makeup of a gun; all it does is assist the shooter in resetting the trigger." Ball added that while the device still requires the user to pull the trigger, it takes less effort and skill to fire the weapon more quickly. Still, Ball said the device has limitations. "Anytime we're talking about shooting a gun fast, the only thing that matters is whether you're able or not to hold that gun on a target," Ball said. Forced Reset Triggers have been at the center of several legal battles in recent years amid an increase in machine gun fire incidents. In 2022, ATF determined that some of the devices would be classified as machine guns under the National Firearms Act, making them illegal to own. According to the Washington Attorney General's office, ATF seized "thousands" of the devices following the designation. The Department of Justice then filed a lawsuit against Rare Breed Triggers, which produced and sold the devices online. Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that ATF had exceeded its authority by designating bump stocks, which allows a shooter to fire a gun more rapidly by using the weapon's recoil to bump the trigger, as a machine gun. A federal judge in Texas cited that ruling, finding similarly that the agency could not designate forced reset triggers as a machine gun. As part of the settlement with the Justice Department, Rare Breed cannot develop or design forced reset triggers for use in any pistol and will enforce its patents to prevent infringement. Rare Breed also agrees to promote the safe and responsible use of its products. In May, the U.S. Attorney General's Office noted the settlement is in alignment with President Donald Trump's "Executive Order Protecting Second Amendment Rights" and the "Attorney General's Second Amendment Enforcement Task Force." The lawsuit brought by Washington alleges the settlement violates a federal prohibition on owning a machine gun and seeks a preliminary injunction to prevent the Trump administration from distributing the seized devices. According to the Washington Attorney General's Office, machine gun conversion devices allow firearms to shoot up to 20 bullets in one second. Use of the devices has increased in recent years, with machine gun fire incidents up 1,400% from 2019 through 2021, according to ShotSpotter, Inc., which has placed acoustic sensors in about 130 U.S. cities. Ball said while he doesn't "necessarily have a dog in the fight or care" about the disagreement regarding forced reset triggers, a rise in the usage of "Glock switches" is a reason for concern. The small, mostly 3-D-printed devices can be attached to the end of a firearm and transform a semi-automatic pistol into a fully-automatic weapon. "That is a device that legitimately turns a firearm into a machine gun," Ball said. In September, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts seized 350 internet domains that were used to illegally import the switches and silencers from China. Between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31 of last year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Chicago alone seized more than 1,500 of the devices, according to the agency.
Yahoo
21 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Delaware leading lawsuit against Trump administration over gun trigger settlement
Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings is co-leading a group of state attorneys general suing the Trump administration for a settlement last month that permits "machine gun conversion devices" for semiautomatic rifles − and the administration's plan to return all previously-seized devices to their owners. The lawsuit stems from the Trump administration's May 13 settlement, which resolved lawsuits brought during the Biden administration. Those suits challenged President Joe Biden's ban on certain "forced-reset triggers." Forced-reset triggers are aftermarket devices used in semi-automatic firearms that mechanically reset the trigger after each shot. They're sometimes called machine gun conversion devices because they allow semiautomatic weapons to shoot as fast as machine guns. They do not, however, convert semi-automatic guns to fully automatic weapons. According to the Delaware Department of Justice, the lawsuit, filed in Maryland, argues that forced-reset triggers are illegal under federal law. "Although ATF previously classified FRTs as machine guns, the agency – under directive from Trump Administration leadership – signed a settlement agreement that promised to stop enforcing federal law against FRTs and redistribute thousands of FRTs that ATF had previously seized," a June 9 news release from the state justice department said. Jennings said the Trump administration's settlement seeks "to reintroduce weapons of war to our communities." The Delaware DOJ said machine gun conversion devices like forced-reset triggers allow firearms "to exceed the rate of fire of many military machine guns, firing up to 20 bullets in one second." In 2022, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives notified firearms licensees that it had determined some forced-reset triggers constituted illegal machine guns under the National Firearms Act, Reuters reported last month. This was because constant finger pressure on the trigger would keep a rifle firing, essentially creating an illegal machine gun, the Biden administration argued. A year later, the federal Department of Justice sued a company that made and distributed such devices nationwide, Rare Breed Triggers. A New York judge ultimately blocked the company from selling the devices. While the New York case was pending, however, the National Association for Gun Rights filed a lawsuit in Texas challenging the Biden-era ban, leading a judge to conclude the ban was unlawful and barring its enforcement. The Trump administration's settlement resolved those lawsuits, which were on appeal, with an agreement to return all forced-reset triggers seized or surrendered to the government to their owners. The Trump administration agreed to not apply the machine gun ban to such devices so long as they are not designed for use with handguns. It's not clear how many, if any, forced-reset triggers were seized from Delaware residents during the Biden administration ban or how many would be returned under the Trump settlement. Nate Raymond with Reuters contributed to this report. Got a tip? Send to Isabel Hughes at ihughes@ For all things breaking news, follow her on Twitter at @izzihughes_ This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Delaware sues Trump administration over gun trigger settlement
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Washington sues to stop federal plan to distribute thousands of machinegun conversion devices
Washington Attorney General Nick Brown joined a coalition of 16 states and the District of Columbia in filing a federal lawsuit Monday against the Trump administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) over a plan to distribute thousands of machinegun conversion devices across the U.S. The lawsuit targets the federal government's decision to stop enforcing restrictions on forced reset triggers (FRTs), devices that allow semi-automatic weapons to fire like machineguns, and to return nearly 12,000 previously seized devices. The devices are federally classified as machineguns under the National Firearms Act. 'Communities are less safe with these mass-shooting devices in circulation,' Brown said in a statement. 'Essentially deregulating them is another example of this administration being driven by extreme ideology rather than commonsense.' FRTs are illegal under federal law and in many states, including Washington. They are designed to replace the standard trigger in firearms and allow continuous fire with a single pull, mimicking the function of fully automatic weapons. Firearms equipped with FRTs can discharge up to 20 rounds per second, according to the lawsuit. ATF had previously classified FRTs as machineguns and conducted seizures across the country. But the agency reversed course following a settlement agreement signed under the Trump administration on May 16, which resolved multiple lawsuits, including one in Texas where a judge ruled the devices did not meet the federal definition of a machinegun. That ruling is currently under appeal. The agreement commits ATF to stop enforcing the federal ban on FRTs—even against people and companies not party to the lawsuits—and to return the devices 'to the extent practicable' to any individual or company who had them seized. Attorneys general argue the move not only violates federal law but also risks 'a permanent threat to public safety,' particularly in states where FRTs are explicitly banned. The complaint alleges that redistributing these devices will increase violent crime, mass shooting incidents, and public health costs. According to the complaint, FRT-equipped firearms have already been linked to several shootings across the country, including in New Jersey and Maryland. From 2019 to 2021, incidents involving machinegun fire rose 1,400%, according to ATF data. The agency has also reported an increase in the use of these devices in violent crimes, including homicide and assaults. The coalition is seeking a preliminary injunction to block the ATF from moving forward with the redistribution plan. It also asks the court to declare the agreement unlawful and set it aside. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. Other states joining the suit include New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Colorado, Hawai'i, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and the District of Columbia.
TimesLIVE
a day ago
- Politics
- TimesLIVE
15 states sue over Trump move to return seized rapid-fire devices for guns
Fifteen Democratic-led US states filed a lawsuit on Monday seeking to block Republican President Donald Trump's administration from returning thousands of previously seized devices that can be used to convert semi-automatic rifles into weapons that can shoot as quickly as machine guns. The states filed the lawsuit in federal court in Baltimore in the wake of the administration's May 16 settlement that resolved litigation involving a ban on certain 'forced-reset triggers' imposed by the government under Trump's Democratic predecessor Joe Biden. The states in the lawsuit said such devices remain illegal to possess under federal law. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives under Biden issued the ban after it determined that some of these devices should be classified as illegal machine guns under a federal law called the National Firearms Act. 'We will not stand by as the Trump administration attempts to secretly legalise machine guns in an effort to once again put firearms industry profits over the safety of our residents,' New Jersey attorney-general Matthew Platkin said. The lawsuit was led by New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland, and also included the states of Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington as well as the District of Columbia. The Trump administration's settlement reversed course on the Biden administration's policies. The settlement resolved lawsuits brought by a gun rights group challenging the ban and cases brought by Biden's justice department against a manufacturer of the devices. Those cases had resulted in conflicting court rulings over the legality of classifying these devices as illegal machine guns. As part of the settlement, the Trump administration agreed to not apply the machine gun ban to such devices as long as they are not designed for use with handguns and agreed to return nearly 12,000 forced-reset triggers that had been seized by the government to their owners. The new lawsuit seeks to block the return of these devices to their owners. The states said conversion devices like forced reset triggers have been frequently used in recent years in violent crimes and mass shootings, and that at least 100,000 such devices that were distributed nationally in recent years should be considered illegal machine guns. The justice department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
15 states sue over Trump move to return seized rapid-fire devices for guns
By Nate Raymond (Reuters) -Fifteen Democratic-led U.S. states filed a lawsuit on Monday seeking to block Republican President Donald Trump's administration from returning thousands of previously seized devices that can be used to convert semiautomatic rifles into weapons that can shoot as quickly as machine guns. The states filed the lawsuit in federal court in Baltimore in the wake of the administration's May 16 settlement that resolved litigation involving a ban on certain "forced-reset triggers" imposed by the government under Trump's Democratic predecessor Joe Biden. The states in the lawsuit said such devices remain illegal to possess under federal law. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives under Biden issued the ban after it determined that some of these devices should be classified as illegal machine guns under a federal law called the National Firearms Act. "We will not stand by as the Trump administration attempts to secretly legalize machine guns in an effort to once again put firearms industry profits over the safety of our residents," New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in a statement. The lawsuit was led by New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland, and also included the states of Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington as well as the District of Columbia. The Trump administration's settlement reversed course on the Biden administration's policies. The settlement resolved lawsuits brought by a gun rights group challenging the ban and cases brought by Biden's Justice Department against a manufacturer of the devices. Those cases had resulted in conflicting court rulings over the legality of classifying these devices as illegal machine guns. As part of the settlement, the Trump administration agreed to not apply the machine gun ban to such devices as long as they are not designed for use with handguns and agreed to return nearly 12,000 forced-reset triggers that had been seized by the government to their owners. The new lawsuit seeks to block the return of these devices to their owners. The states said conversion devices like forced reset triggers have been frequently used in recent years in violent crimes and mass shootings, and that at least 100,000 such devices that were distributed nationally in recent years should be considered illegal machine guns. The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
