According to an article I just read at Police1.com, the City of Los Angeles is suing Polymer80 for selling a legal product in a legal manner. Yes, you read that right. They appear to be trying to justify this frivolous lawsuit by citing how many times said legal product was used in a crime. For info, according to LAPD’s Chief Moore, more than 700 “ghost guns” were seized in Los Angeles last year.
I’m still sitting here waiting for Los Angeles to sue Ford, Chevy, Dodge, Honda, Toyota, or any other vehicle manufacturer. Do you realize how many times a car is used illegally in the commission of a crime in Los Angeles? According to Artz & Sturm Law Group, “36,000 DUI arrests are currently being made annually in this region which means that there are 100 DUI arrests in Los Angeles County each and every day.”
Every single suspect in those 36,000 annual DUI arrests is using a legal product in an illegal manner.
Why does the City of Los Angeles not care about the victims of DUI?
What about the breweries, distilleries and wineries? Why is Los Angeles not suing them? After all, statistically speaking, if you are a law abiding person and not a drug dealer or gang banger, you are far more likely to be killed by a drunk driver than you are by someone with a gun, let alone a “ghost gun.”
Relax. I am not remotely serious about suing car companies or alcoholic beverage producers. They are not responsible for the criminal actions taken by their customers, no more than Polymer80 is responsible for the actions of their customers. However, if suing Polymer80 makes some sort of sense to you, then so should suing car companies and alcohol producers.
What is a “ghost gun?”
For those not aware, the phrase “ghost gun” is used by gun control fanatics to refer to any home produced firearm that does not have a serial number. While 700 of those may have been seized by the LAPD last year, that does not remotely mean they were all Polymer80 products. There are dozens of manufacturers who produce and legally sell 80% firearm frames.
“Polymer80’s business model makes a mockery of federal and state background check laws,” Feuer said. “A customer on their website is asked to simply self-certify they are not a felon.”
A closer look at the laws related to “ghost guns” for those not familiar with them reveals that it is legal for a manufacturer to sell the 80% frame kits without a background check because they are by definition, NOT a firearm. As such, a background check is not required by law, no more than you are required to submit a background check when buying a hamburger at McDonalds. A firearm is a firearm, and something that is not a firearm is not a firearm. It is not rocket science, but apparently it is beyond the grasp of LA’s City Attorney Mike Feuer.
While California has passed laws which require a home builder to submit for a serial number before they complete an 80% firearm frame, that law only exists there, and does not prevent someone from first buying the kit.
Who “needs” a Polymer80?
Feuer also said. “Nobody who could buy a serialized gun and pass a background check would ever need a ghost gun.”
Clearly Feuer does not understand anything about civil rights. There is no requirement for me to prove a need before I exercise one of my rights.
Who buys a Polymer80 anyway?
I am a retired California cop in good standing. I have passed many firearms background checks during my lifetime, including one just a few weeks ago. The picture of the Polymer80 firearm in this article is my own personal Polymer80 that I built. I did not buy it out of some “need” to bypass a background check. I bought it for the same reason I have purchased and built other 80% firearms; for the challenge and sense of accomplishment one gets from building their own gun.
Now, as a retired cop, the proliferation of these “ghost guns” being used in crime does in fact bother me. Many homicides, including those of some cops, have been committed by individuals using these “ghost guns” which they illegally possessed. That said, I do not see how suing a company that has done nothing wrong is remotely a wise or even viable solution.
Here’s an idea…
Perhaps the law enforcement agencies responsible for enforcing gun laws need to start putting a more concerted effort into finding out who is completing these 80% firearms and then illegally selling them to dirtbags. Perhaps the California DOJ’s Firearms Bureau should stop harassing law abiding people who made a simple mistake when trying to comply with the ridiculous web of California gun laws and instead spend their time investigating people who are illegally manufacturing and selling guns to criminals?
I know this is a novel concept, but how about we stop penalizing people who have done absolutely nothing wrong because a few criminals are doing criminal stuff?
