|
The
action by Alito, who handles emergency matters arising from a
group of states including Texas, effectively freezes the
litigation as the court weighs a request on Thursday from
President Joe Biden's administration to reinstate the rule
pending an appeal.
Alito put the case on hold for one week, until Aug. 4, and gave
the rule's challengers until Aug. 2 to respond to the
administration's request.
The administration asked the justices to halt a Texas-based
federal judge's nationwide ruling that invalidated a Justice
Department restriction on the sale of ghost gun kits while it
appeals to the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of
Appeals.
The administration warned that allowing the judge's ruling to
stand would enable an "irreversible flow of large numbers of
untraceable ghost guns into our nation's communities."
The Justice Department rule, issued in 2022 to target the rapid
proliferation of the homemade weapons, bans "buy build shoot"
kits without serial numbers that individuals can get online or
at a store without a background check. The kits can be readily
assembled into a working firearm in as little as 20 minutes.
The rule clarified that ghost guns qualify as "firearms" under
the federal Gun Control Act, requiring serial numbers and
manufacturers be licensed. Sellers of the kits also must become
licensed and run background checks prior to a sale.
Several plaintiffs, including two gun owners and two gun rights
advocacy groups, challenged the rule in federal court in Texas.
U.S. Judge Reed O'Connor on July 5 blocked the rule nationwide,
finding that the administration exceeded its authority in
adopting it.
(Reporting by Andrew Chung in New York; Editing by Marguerita
Choy)
[© 2023 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2022 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
