MADISON, Wis. — Nineteen Attorneys General across the United States, including Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul, are looking to change the federal government’s stance on ghost guns.
Ghost guns are firearms sold in parts, but not complete. Kaul told News 3 Now that they can be easily converted into a full firearm.
The gunman who opened fire on employees at Paradigm in Middleton in September 2018 used a ghost gun.
Kaul said some people are building ghost guns as a way to get around regulations, making the gun harder to be traced.
“This is a way that individuals can kind of get around laws that require background checks to be conducted,” Kaul said, “so someone who is not permitted to own a firearm in Wisconsin can maybe purchase a part and get around a background check law.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives adopted a position in 2015, saying it would not apply federal law to ghost guns.
Kaul said the Attorneys General filed an amicus brief after Everyone for Gun Safety and four municipalities filed a suit against the ATF and U.S> Department of Justice in August alleging those agencies unlawfully concluded that ghost guns are not “firearm” under the 2015 Gun Control Act. He hopes the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York accepts their position and blocks the ATF’s interpretation.
“We need to make sure we’re taking steps to make sure our communities are safe,” Kaul told News 3 Now. “That includes in my view having common sense gun safety measures like universal background checks.”
COPYRIGHT 2020 BY CHANNEL 3000. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THIS MATERIAL MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED, BROADCAST, REWRITTEN OR REDISTRIBUTED.
