RI Lawmakers Try To Ban 3D-Printed 'Ghost Guns'

The Rhode Island Senate approved a bill Wednesday that would close a loophole allowing people to create untraceable "ghost" guns made with 3D printers or other non-metal components. Under the bill, it would be illegal to own, build, purchase or sell firearms that are made from plastic fiberglass, which is immune to metal detectors. The ban also covers any gun without a serial number, one that is primarily plastic or fiberglass or any gun that couldn't be easily identified by a security screening.

"As we struggle to fight the gun epidemic in this country and try to improve our efforts to prevent children, criminals and the mentally ill from possessing firearms, we must not tolerate attempts to subvert our laws by making guns untraceable or undetectable," said the bill's sponsor, Sen. Cynthia A. Coyne. "Serial numbers, background checks and metal detectors help prevent tragedies, and our laws should be clear that no one should be trying to get around them to engage in criminal activity."

Coyne, a former Rhode Island State Police lieutenant, is a Democrat representing East Providence, Bristol and Barrington.

If signed into law, violators would face up to a decade in prison and $10,000 in fines. Anyone who repeatedly breaks the law would have no opportunities for suspended or deferred sentences, or for probation.

So-called "untraceable" weapons garnered national attention in 2018, when the federal government settled a lawsuit with a Texas nonprofit organization who posted free blueprints online showing how to create plastic guns using a 3D printer. While the State Department claimed that Defense Distribution violated the Arms Export Control Act, the government later settled, allowing the blueprints to be released.

Attorneys general and lawmakers from across the country participated in the lawsuit, including Coyne. The Rhode Island Working Group for Gun Safety, a 43-person task force created after the Parkland, Florida, school shooting, recommended banning 3D printed firearms.

"With 3-D guns, criminals seeking guns would be able to bypass background checks, age restrictions and gun licensing rules," Sen. Coyne continued. "This is a terrifying precedent, a blow to public safety and a huge potential tragedy in the making. We must not wait for the federal government or the courts to solve this problem. We can and must move now in Rhode Island to address this issue."

West Warwick Rep. Patricia Serpa, also a Democrat, is sponsoring companion legislation. The Senate bill heads to the House for consideration.