Ghost Guns

May 08, 2022 | Written by - Sophia Casa '23

As recent weeks of mass shootings have highlighted, guns undoubtedly have a negative impact on society. Many complain of the less than rigorous background checks and lack of regulation on these weapons, which get them so easily into peoples’ hands and onto the streets. While current measures are far from being effective, they provide some sort of government monitoring and procedure for these sales, but what happens when you take this away? What happens if a gun is created to be untraceable? Well then, you have a ghost gun, a weapon that is both capable of shooting bullets and evading regulation.

This raises another question: what makes a ghost gun untraceable? Unlike most guns available in stores, ghost guns are 3-D printed or made from “buy, build, shoot” kits. This unorthodox assembly method often leaves them without a serial number, meaning that they cannot be traced. Matters are further complicated by the lack of a finished frame and receiver on these weapons, which, despite being functional, prevent the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives from tracking them. Therefore if a gun is untraceable and cannot be regulated, what stops it from getting into the hands of those who shouldn’t have them? Absolutely nothing. Part of the reason ghost guns are so dangerous is because there are no background checks needed to get one, meaning a gun could be purchased by children, felons, and domestic abusers, as was demonstrated by examples like a shooting at Magruder High School this year where the shooter, a 17 year old, used a ghost gun.

What is to be done? On April 11th, the Department of Justice submitted a rule to the Federal Register to tackle the rise of ghost guns by making background checks necessary for kit selling, mandating a serial number for 3-D printers or any unserialized guns, and having gun records retained longer than the maximum of twenty years. All of this is coming at a critical time: in the years since COVID-19 there have been spikes in gun sales and the number of ghost guns confiscated in a year now numbers in the thousands. Without regulation, these weapons will continue to exist by operating in a gray area of what constitutes a “weapon,” while everyday people will face repercussions for this negligence. It’s become abundantly clear that as technology changes, so do the consequences that come with it. Ghost guns are a prime example of an idea of unfathomable terror that’s now our reality.