Ghost guns or unserialized weapons are firearms that can be self-assembled, and by definition do not have serial numbers. They can be purchased as kits or separate parts online, and according to Giffords often arrive as “80% receivers.” While it was traditionally difficult to complete the assembly of these guns, the remaining 20% of work can now be done in a couple of hours. However, despite being able to look and function like other guns, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms does not classify ghost guns as firearms. This exclusion means that these guns are unregulated, buyers are not subject to background checks, and serial numbers are not used to track them. Their increasingly pervasive use, untraceability, and lack of regulations represent critical threats for rising gun violence levels in the United States. 

Ghost guns have increased in popularity over the past year. According to Vice, ghost gun manufacturers report fulfillment delays due to a “pandemic buying surge.” Before the pandemic, ghost guns were already posing a grave concern. Giffords notes that “individuals prohibited by law from possessing firearms have used or planned to use ghost guns” in several mass shootings. These incidents include a mass shooting in California in 2017 during which a man killed six people and injured two with assault-style rifles he assembled with parts he ordered online, a workplace shooting by a man prohibited from accessing guns in Wisconsin in 2018, and a school shooting in 2019 during which a 16-year-old used a “ghost gun to kill two students and injure three others” in California. 

However, beyond being used in mass shootings, ghost guns are becoming more pervasive in daily acts of gun violence. As BBC reported on April 9, President Biden’s executive order gives “the Justice Department 30 days to propose a rule that will help reduce the number of so-called ‘ghost guns’. While the scope of the rule is presently unknown, Executive Director of CeaseFirePA estimates that the Justice Department will “at least bring kits under the umbrella of ATF regulation of firearms, meaning that you have to undergo a background check to buy them from a federally licensed dealer, and they will be required to have a serial number.” This change would make buying parts or kits comparable to purchasing an actual gun.

Beyond individual state actions such as those taken in California, Connecticut, New Jersey, and Washington State, the threat of ghost guns must be mitigated through national legislation. It is imperative that this legislation is urgently enacted and a contemporary reflection of the power of technology to create weapons. 

Citations:

Ghost guns. (2021, February 16). Retrieved April 18, 2021, from https://giffords.org/lawcenter/gun-laws/policy-areas/hardware-ammunition/ghost-guns/ 

Hitt, B. (2020, January 31). ‘Ghost guns’ investigation: Law Enforcement Seeing unserialized firearms on daily basis in SoCal. Retrieved April 18, 2021, from https://abc7.com/ghost-guns-california-gun-laws-kits/5893043/ 

Kiger, P. (2021, April 08). What are ghost guns and why are they so dangerous? Retrieved April 18, 2021, from https://science.howstuffworks.com/ghost-guns.htm 

Liptak, K. (2021, April 08). Biden to take first limited steps on gun control, including on ‘ghost guns’ and PISTOL braces. Retrieved April 18, 2021, from https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/07/politics/biden-executive-actions-guns/index.html 

US gun VIOLENCE: Biden takes action on ‘INTERNATIONAL embarrassment’. (2021, April 08). Retrieved April 18, 2021, from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-56672892 

Vadala, N. (2021, April 15). Biden wants to crack down on ‘ghost guns.’ What are they and are they legal In pennsylvania? Retrieved April 18, 2021, from https://www.inquirer.com/philly-tips/ghost-guns-pennsylvania-joe-biden-20210415.html