We investigate and prosecute crimes in Iowa. The state needs to pass a ghost gun law.
On the morning of June 22, 2022, the Schmidt family of Cedar Falls was enjoying a family camping trip to Maquoketa Caves State Park. For reasons unknown, a lunatic with a gun entered their tent and killed Lula Schmidt, age 6, and her parents, Sarah and Tyler Schmidt. Somehow, 9-year-old Arlo Schmidt escaped physical harm.
Shortly after the rampage, the 23-year-old murderer used the gun to take his own life. According to media reports, the bullets fired on that horrific morning came from an untraceable ghost gun. This means the murder weapon was most likely a privately built firearm assembled from a gun kit purchased online or downloaded from a 3D printer. In all but eight states, ghost guns do not require a unique Federal Firearm License (FFL) serial number.
Prior to the availability of ghost guns, gun criminals would often go to great lengths to prevent being linked to their crime gun. But with easy access to ghost guns, they no longer need to worry. Violent gangsters, premeditated murderers, rampage killers, and so on, can fire away at their victims, drop the gun at the crime scene and make their escape.
Even after the firearm is seized by law enforcement, the absence of an FFL serial number makes it impossible for law enforcement to trace it back to the shooter.
It gets worse. Until ghost guns parts are completely assembled into a working firearm, they do not satisfy the legal definition of a firearm. For this reason, they may be purchased without a background check. Even more alarming is that online gun kits and downloadable guns can be easily obtained and built by minors.
A common fallacy about ghost guns is that they are not as reliable as firearms acquired from a federally licensed firearm business (e.g., a retail gun seller such as Scheels). Nothing could be further from the truth. Ghost gun assembly kits and 3D printers make it relatively easy to produce high-quality weapons such as semiautomatic handguns and assault rifles. In fact, these technologies provide violent street gangs and terror groups with the capability to produce fully automatic weapons (i.e., machine guns).
Referring to level of difficulty in making a ghost guns, former Deputy Assistant Director of Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Carlos Canino said, “If you can put Ikea furniture together you can make a gun at home.”
Highly efficient firearms untraceable by law enforcement investigators and built easily from online kits or 3D printers without a background check or age prohibition. What more could organized crime groups, drug traffickers, street gangs, school shooters, terrorists or rampage killers want?
Not surprisingly, the criminal use of ghost guns is increasing rapidly. According to a U.S. Department of Justice report, from 2019 to 2022, the number of ghosts seized at crime scenes by local law enforcement increased 119% (25,785 were seized in 2022).
Especially alarming is the growing use of ghost guns against law enforcement officers. In January 2022, a fully automatic ghost gun was used in the attempted murder of three Houston police officers. Following the July 2022 shooting death of North Kansas City Police Officer Daniel Vasques, a 3D printed handgun and 3D printer were found in the suspect’s home. In January 2023, Selma, California Police Officer Gonzalo Carrasco was killed in an ambush in which the shooter used a ghost gun assault rifle. In May 2023, a convicted felon in Mississippi was convicted of using a 3D printer to make and sell machine guns.
The proliferation of ghost guns is also elevating the risk of rampage shootings in our schools. A July 12, 2023, Washington Post report points to teenagers’ increasing awareness of how easy it is to obtain ghost gun kits online. The article describes five recent ghost gun shootings by teenagers.
Among these was 18-year-old Zach Burkard who bought an online ghost gun kit and used the assembled handgun to kill 16 year-old Calvin Van Pelt and 17 year-old Ersheen Elaiaiser. Iowa schools will not be immune to ghost gun incidents. In August of 2023, a 19-year-old male was arrested for possession of a 9 mm semiautomatic ghost handgun at a high school football game in Waterloo.
Like other technologies, the private means for building firearms will inevitability become more efficient, precise and portable. It will not be long before organized crime groups, terrorist organizations and other bad actors have the capability to produce dozens, perhaps hundreds, of firearms within days or weeks.
The proposed ghost gun bill does not prohibit firearm hobbyists, hunters, or non-prohibited Iowans from purchasing unassembled gun kits or making downloadable firearms. However, once the gun parts are built into a working firearm, the bill requires an FFL serial number to be stamped into the gun’s receiver or frame. After the firearm is properly serialized, possession, transfer and sale are handled in accordance with existing state laws.
As strong supporters of the Second Amendment, we believe gun rights must not be at odds with investigating and prosecuting violent gun crimes (i.e., stopping bad guys with guns). Ghost guns greatly impede the ability of law enforcement officers and county attorneys to carry out these duties. With the inevitable improvements in the technology of private gun manufacturing the ghost gun problem will become much worse. Based on decades of investigating and prosecuting violent crime in Iowa, we believe it is time for the Iowa Legislature to pass a ghost gun bill. If you share our concerns, please contact the members of the Iowa House Public Safety Committee, and urge them to support House File 488.
Tony Thompson is Black Hawk County sheriff. Brian Williams is Black Hawk County attorney.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa needs a ghost gun law to help law enforcement and prosecutors
