Judge blocks release of 3D gun plans

A US judge on Tuesday blocked the planned release of 3D printed gun blueprints hours before they were set to hit the Internet, siding with states that sued to halt publication of designs to make weapons that security screening may not detect.

US District Judge Robert Lasnik in Seattle said the blueprints’ publication could cause irreparable harm to US citizens. The decision blocked a settlement US President Donald Trump’s administration had reached with a company which initially said it planned to put files online yesterday.

Gun control proponents are concerned the weapons made from 3D printers are untraceable, undetectable “ghost” firearms that pose a threat to global security. Some gun rights groups say the technology is expensive, the guns are unreliable and the threat is being overblown.

Josh Blackman, a lawyer for the company Defense Distributed, said during Tuesday’s hearing that blueprints had already been uploaded to the firm’s website. The publication of those files is now illegal under federal law, Lasnik said.

Defense Distributed and its founder Cody Wilson argued that access to the online blueprints is guaranteed under First and Second Amendment rights, respectively to free speech and to bear arms.

Lasnik said First Amendment issues had to be looked at closely and set another hearing in the case for August 10.