(Photo
by:
HUM
Images/Universal
Images
Group
via
Getty
Images)
This
Term,
the
Supreme
Court
will
hear
arguments
in
Garland
v.
VanDerStok.
The
case
is
about
whether
“ghost
guns,”
that
is,
weapons
that
are
sold
in
kits
to
be
assembled
by
the
purchaser,
are
exempt
from
federal
gun
regulations.
Of
course,
once
assembled,
ghost
guns
are
as
deadly
as
ready-to-shoot
guns,
and
gun
activists
are
really
trying
to
hammer
that
point
home
for
the
justices
on
the
Supreme
Court.
In
a
surprisingly
effective
publicity
stunt,
Gifford
Law
Center
sent
a
query
to
the
Supreme
Court
Police
to
get
their
take
on
the
matter.
As
reported
by
Huffington
Post:
“I
noticed
on
the
link
that
guns
are
prohibited
on
tours
(makes
sense),”
[Chris
Harris]
the
vice
president
of
communications
for
Giffords
Law
Center,
a
major
gun
law
reform
group,
wrote
in
an
to
Supreme
Court
Police.
“Quick
question
―
Does
that
prohibition
on
firearms
apply
to
unfinished
frames
similar
to
the
one
linked
below
even
though
it
is
incapable
of
firing
in
its
current
state?”
He
then
included
a
link
to
an
incomplete
Glock-style
pistol
frame
that
might
be
used
to
assemble
a
ghost
gun.“Correct,
you
cannot
bring
ANY
weapon
of
ANY
kind
into
the
Supreme
Court
building
or
grounds,”
the
security
team
responded
in
a
message
shared
with
HuffPost.
The
point
for
Harris
is
pretty
obvious,
“These
emails
reveal
that
the
Supreme
Court
itself
considers
ghost
guns
to
be
guns
—
because
they
are.
Justices
must
apply
that
same
common
sense
to
the
law
and
allow
the
[Bureau
of
Alcohol,
Tobacco,
Firearms
and
Explosives
(ATF)]
to
do
the
job
it
was
created
to
do.”
The
justices
will
hear
arguments
in
the
case
tomorrow,
October
8,
2024.
Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of
The
Jabot
podcast,
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
email
her
with
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments
and
follow
her
on
Twitter
@Kathryn1 or
Mastodon
@[email protected].