New York state officials are working to clamp down on illegal guns by outlawing the sharing of digital blueprints that allow individuals to 3D print components that turn semi-automatic firearms into machine guns.
The parts, called auto-sears, can be fitted into semi-automatic weapons, including Glock pistols and AR-15 rifles, allowing a shooter to empty their magazine with one pull of the trigger.
And thanks to advances in 3D printing that allow people to manufacture gun parts from the comfort of their home, fully automatic firearms are becoming more common in New York City, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said.
“We talk about the Iron Pipeline, now we have the Kitchen Pipeline,” said Bragg about the flow of illegal firearms smuggled into the city from states with more lenient gun laws. “We’re seeing this in our cases. We’re seeing this in recoveries. We’re seeing this in gun buy-backs. As technology evolves we have to keep pace in law enforcement.”
Bragg joined State Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal and Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal at his Manhattan office Friday to announce a new bill that would criminalize the sale and distribution of the digital files necessary to manufacture the deadly 3D-printed components.
The proposed bill is the latest effort on the part of state legislators to address the proliferation of ghost guns, which can be printed at home and lack serial numbers that help investigators track illegal firearms and keep them away from criminals.
Hoylman-Sigal and Rosenthal introduced bills in 2023 that made it a felony to manufacture 3D-printed gun parts and a misdemeanor to distribute files containing the blueprints necessary to print them. The bills, S7364 and A7489, remain in committee.
Manhattan DA’s Office
A digital blueprint for an AR-style auto-sear. (Manhattan DA’s Office)
It is currently illegal to own or manufacture auto-sears in New York. The new bill would make anyone caught sharing digital files necessary to print the components, including out-of-state vendors, to a New Yorker punishable by up to one year in prison. The files can be easily found on CAD file sharing services, but are also
“New technology has created the possibility for anyone, not just registered gun manufacturers, to self-manufacture guns, magazines and rapid modification devices with 3D printers, creating a dangerous loophole in our state gun laws,” Hoylman-Sigal said.
Last year, 24-year-old Hayden Espinosa was indicted for selling 3D-printed guns and firearm components, including auto-sears, to an undercover NYPD officer while serving time at a federal prison in Louisiana in 2023.
Espinosa used cellphones he smuggled into prison to arrange the sales, including on Aug. 7, 2023, when he sold one auto-sear for a Glock pistol and another, 3D-printed auto-sear for an AR-style rifle to the undercover officer.
In 2023, Christopher Fox was indicted after police discovered he had manufactured all the components necessary to assembly an assault rifle inside his Upper East Side apartment after investing nearly $7,600 in 3D-printing equipment.
The ATF’s most recent stats from 2023 show that 53 machine-gun conversion devices were recovered in New York in 2023, as compared to 5,816 nationally.
