The control of guns is a big issue in New York and throughout the United States. With the disturbing upswing in senseless shootings and the approach of the anniversary of the Sandy Hook elementary school shootings, the next new gun manufacturer just may be in the garage next door as 3-D printing comes of age.
In mid-October, former Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who survived an assassination attempt in 2011, toured a gun show in Saratoga Springs to promote an agreement that ensures background checks are performed at the time of sale. While consumers and politicians debate the freedom to own firearms, a University of Texas law student created an operable gun on a 3-D printer and uploaded the plans to the Internet.
A New York Times article describes the efforts of European law enforcement to recreate the 3-D gun named the Liberator, to determine the plausibility of its threat to strict European gun laws. While the initial design of the Liberator is crude, and delivers only one bullet before the barrel must be replaced, it is deadly.
Cody Wilson, the 25-year old gun designer who removed his plans from the Internet at the request of the State Department, spoke to the New York Daily News, noting:
Printers do not perform background checks. A plastic gun downloaded and manufactured in 18 hours creates a new day for state, federal and national security.
Speak with experienced defense counsel in New York if facing weapons charges of any kind.