Ghost gun manufacturer agrees to stop sales to Maryland residents
BALTIMORE– A leading manufacturer of ghost guns has agreed to stop selling its untraceable, unassembled firearms to Maryland residents under a settlement agreement announced Wednesday by the city of Baltimore.
City officials sued the company, Nevada-based Polymer80, two years ago “in response to the rapid escalation of ghost guns appearing on Baltimore streets and in the hands of minors,” the mayor’s office said. Officials said the settlement grants the city all the relief requested in the lawsuit, including $1.2 million in damages.
“Nine out of 10 homicides in Baltimore City are committed with guns,” Mayor Brandon Scott said in a statement. “This settlement – and the statement it makes on the harmful impact of these ghost guns – is a critical victory for efforts to confront gun violence in our communities.”
A spokesperson for Polymer80 did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.
The lawsuit accused Polymer80 of intentionally subverting federal and state firearms laws by designing, manufacturing and supplying gun assembly kits without serial numbers to purchasers who do not undergo background checks. It was filed on the same day that Maryland’s ban on ghost guns went into effect in 2022 following a change in the law that expanded the definition of a firearm to include “an unfinished frame or receiver.”
The Biden administration has announced new federal regulations in 2022 aimed at curbing the spread of ghost guns, which authorities say are showing up in increasing numbers at crime scenes across the country. The regulations, which included expanding the definition of firearms, were quickly challenged in court by gun rights groups.
Attorneys for the city of Baltimore have argued that Polymer80 improperly classified its gun-making equipment as “non-firearms,” allowing them to end up in the hands of convicted felons and minors — people who would otherwise be prohibited from purchasing firearms.
While Baltimore saw a significant drop in homicides and shootings last year, city leaders are grappling with a rise in youth violence.
Baltimore leaders worked with the national nonprofit Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence in filing the lawsuit.
“The only market for ghost guns is people who can’t buy legitimate guns at a gun store,” said Philip Bangle, senior trial attorney at Brady. He wondered why else anyone would buy a firearm that they have to build themselves – without quality controls or other measures to ensure it functions properly when the trigger is pulled.
Polymer80 has been the target of similar lawsuits in other cities, including Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Washington, DC
The city of Los Angeles sued the company after a teenager used its products in a high school shooting that left three children dead. That case also resulted in a settlement agreement in which Polymer80 agreed to stop selling ghost guns in California. The Washington case also resulted in a $4 million judgment against Polymer80 and banned the sale of its products to city residents.
But officials in Baltimore said their settlement goes the furthest yet in restricting the company’s operations. Under the agreement, the company is not allowed to advertise in Maryland and the sales ban also applies to dealers in nearby states that do business with Maryland residents. The company must also file quarterly reports documenting all ghost gun sales in neighboring states, according to city officials.
The lawsuit was also filed against the Hanover Armory gun store in Maryland, which is not part of the settlement agreement. That part of the lawsuit is still ongoing.
Officials said Baltimore police seized 462 ghost guns last year, a number that shows they are prevalent across the city.
Scott, who is running for re-election as mayor of Baltimore this year, said the lawsuit shows his administration is “using every tool at its disposal to address the epidemic of gun violence we face.”