AG Rayfield and 15 other Attorneys General Sue ATF Over Illegal Actions Involving Forced Reset Triggers
Attorney General Dan Rayfield today announced he and a coalition of 15 other attorneys general are suing the Trump Administration, and in particular the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), over its official plans to distribute thousands of machine gun conversion devices (MCD) to communities across the United States.
ATF’s action involves Forced Reset Triggers, which allow even novice shooters to achieve the firepower of a military machine gun. Although ATF previously classified FRTs as machine guns, ATF—under directive from Trump Administration leadership—signed a settlement agreement that promises to stop enforcing federal law against FRTs and that promises to redistribute thousands of FRTs ATF had previously seized. The multistate litigation seeks to prevent that imminent redistribution, because FRTs are illegal to possess under federal law.
“These devices turn regular guns into machine guns, and there’s a reason they’re illegal. They’re designed to unleash rapid, uncontrolled fire, and they’ve been linked to deadly school shootings across the country,” said Rayfield. “The idea that the federal government would hand thousands of these devices back out into our communities is a serious threat to public safety.”
In recent years, machine gun conversion devices like FRTs, which dramatically increase a firearm’s rate of fire, have been frequently used in violent crimes and mass shootings, worsening the gun violence epidemic in the United States. Firearms equipped with MCDs are able to exceed the rate of fire of many military machine guns, firing up to 20 bullets in one second. ATF has noted a significant rise in the use of MCDs, leading to increasing incidents of machine gun fire – up 1,400% from 2019 through 2021.
“Machine guns have no place on our streets and the Trump Administration’s decision to further weaken enforcement of gun safety laws will only lead to more lives lost and communities shattered,” said Angela Ferrell-Zabala, executive director of Moms Demand Action. “We’re proud to stand with these attorneys general in the fight to keep weapons of war out of our neighborhoods.”
Oregon has demonstrated this issue is a priority. State lawmakers are looking at current legislation that would ban rapid-fire devices like bump stocks. Senate Bill 243 already passed the Oregon Senate and is now headed to the Oregon House of Representatives.
Today’s lawsuit seeks to prevent the redistribution of FRTs because they are prohibited by U.S. law, which prohibits anyone from owning machine guns, including devices that convert firearms into automatic weapons. The lawsuit explains that the federal government cannot violate U.S. law, even when it tries to bury those violations in a settlement agreement.
The coalition will seek a preliminary injunction to halt the Trump Administration from distributing FRT devices in ways that directly harm Plaintiff States in contravention of federal law.
The lawsuit explains that the redistribution of machine gun conversion devices will permanently threaten public safety nationwide. And as the lawsuit highlights, ATF has even admitted that returning FRTs in states that prohibit them would “aid and abet” violations of state laws. The Attorneys General seek to prevent those harms from occurring.
Attorney General Rayfield filed this lawsuit with the attorneys general of Colorado, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia.