The Supreme Court heard the case on Wednesday. Oral argument in Garland vs Cargill, the question arises whether a semi-automatic rifle with a bump stock is a machine gun. A machine gun is defined as „a weapon that fires multiple shots automatically by a single trigger function without manual reloading.“ 26 USC § 5845(b). If a gun fires automatically, that is, without any manual operation, and the trigger fires with only one function (pull or press), then it is a machine gun.
In the first two sentences of his opening statement to the government, Brian Fletcher unwittingly explained why bump stocks are the way they are. do not have machine gun. With a bump stock, you place your index finger on the built-in finger ledge and push the front of the rifle forward with your other hand.As long as the shooter maintains that steady forward pressure, the rifle will continuously I'm going to fire…“ What he didn't mention is that if you just pull the trigger and don't manually keep pushing the handguard forward, the gun will only fire his one shot and stop firing.
A video is worth a thousand photos. clock A machine gun firing. Just hold it with one hand and pull the trigger to fire continuously until the magazine is empty. This is done automatically by her one function of triggers.
This is not the case with bump stocks. Try holding it with only one hand and pulling the trigger. Once you fire one shot, the firing will stop.look here 3:15-4:48. Unlike the machine guns mentioned above, it did not continue to fire even if you kept pulling the trigger.
now clock Gunshots accompanied by bump stocks in slow motion starting at 4:54. “So please watch over this place as my hand.” pull forward The narrator says: “When the gunman fires, the recoil causes the trigger to return to my stationary finger over and over again, causing me to pull the trigger over and over again very quickly…” As the video shows, the trigger moves from shot to shot. He only works once.
Or, as Fletcher says, pull the trigger. and again „Push the front of the rifle forward.“ and „Maintain that steady forward pressure.“ It's not „automatic“ with a „single function of the trigger.“ He also said firing is „automatic“ because „when you push forward to fire the first round, the bump stock uses the gun's recoil energy to create a continuous back-and-forth cycle.“ Even if you pull the trigger, what happens if you stop pushing forward? It stops firing.
For years, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has classified non-mechanical bump stocks as not machine guns. Richard Vasquez was the top examiner in the ATF Firearms Technology Division and was involved in this classification. As an attorney for clients regulated or prosecuted by the ATF, I knew Mr. Vasquez to be a tough but fair law enforcement officer who knew where to draw the line.He is currently retired but you can clock An explanation of why his bump stock is not a machine gun.
Although many theories were put forward during oral argument, two actual firearm designs emerged. One concerns the Atkins Accelerator, his mechanical bump stock that utilizes a spring device to facilitate continuous fire. The ATF initially approved the design as not a machine gun, but later rescinded that classification and determined it to be a machine gun. Unlike the non-mechanical bump stocks at issue here, there is no need to maintain continuous forward pressure on the barrel or handguard to continue firing.
Other devices mentioned in the arguments are the devices referenced in. US vs Camp (5th Cir. 2003), which included an electrically actuated trigger mechanism. It turned out to be a machine gun because it „required only one action, the pull of an attached switch, to fire multiple shots.“ No manual intervention was required. This is very different from manually operated bump stocks.
There was a lot of talk about rapid fire, hundreds of rounds per minute (a mere theoretical concept since the magazine can only hold about 30 rounds). But, as Fletcher acknowledged, „we recognize that this is not a rate of fire statute.“ Indeed, under the statutory definition, a machine gun can fire. very slowlyHowever, it can also fire automatically with a single function of the trigger.
of transcript While the content of oral argument reveals intense debate, the text of the law is a living room elephant. A non-mechanical bump stock is not a machine gun.