More than bacon grease flows through the “kitchen table pipeline.” On Friday, May 16, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office presented an innocuous 3D-printed object, small enough to fit in the palm of a clenched fist: a homemade auto sear used to significantly expand a single-shot gun’s firing capacity to fully-automatic.
The component, also known as a “Glock switch,” is already illegal on both a state and federal level. But getting hands on one is significantly easier with 3D printing in a trade previously reliant on overseas weapons trafficking. Now auto sears can be homemade with the increasingly cheaper technology from the “kitchen table” through online blueprints.
Manhattan D.A. Alvin Bragg says he is partnering with Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal and State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal to crack down on such 3D printing instructions enabling the proliferation of such parts.
“It is important to the safety of Manhattanites to plug up this additional hole,” said Bragg. “Which are the CAD files that are used to provide the sketches [and] the designs to print the guns. You need to make it illegal to transfer the files to make ‘Glock switches’ and these sears to make that apply.”
He highlighted the state lawmakers’ bill, which would outlaw the sharing, selling or distributing files containing auto sear blueprints. The proponents say the 3D-printed components have been found in New York City neighborhoods traditionally impacted most by shootings. ATF seizures of auto sears jumped from 658 to 5,816 between 2019 and 2023 nationally.
“It’s still legal to create an instrument of war from your couch or wherever you hang out,” said Rosenthal. “From a park bench you can create an instrument of war. And that is why we have to change the law.”
Machine guns remain illegal under the federal National Firearms Act but litigation over other modifications for increasing fire rates like bump stocks and forced-reset triggers continue on a national level.
To be clear, 3D-printed auto sears do not need to be paired with a 3D-printed “ghost” gun — they can also be slotted into some traditional firearms. Another bill sponsored by State Senator Zellnor Myrie would ban the sale of those “convertible” pistols allowing easy modification from an auto sear. The legislation passed the Senate Codes Committee this Tuesday, May 20.
“Glock switches allow anyone with $25 and a screwdriver to turn a handgun into a DIY machine gun, but some gun manufacturers haven’t taken responsible steps to prevent their guns from being easily compatible with these dangerous, illegal, rapidly spreading devices,” said Moms Demand Action volunteer Barry Graubart in a statement. “New York has been at the forefront of innovative gun safety measures to prevent senseless violence and this is yet another example of the leadership we need to save lives.
“We’re grateful to Senator Myrie for his leadership and will continue to support our lawmakers as this important public safety bill moves through the legislature.”
Across the country, state and city governments are suing gun manufacturers over designing firearms that can be converted into automatic weapons with an auto sear. New Jersey, Minnesota and the city of Baltimore all reportedly filed lawsuits against Glock in the past year.
The Manhattan D.A. also pointed to specific cases involving 3D-printed auto sears including one involving high-ranking transnational gang members in a weapons trafficking indictment and another involving a gunrunner allegedly selling illegal components while behind bars from a Telegram channel where he and others allegedly espoused “racially and ethnically motivated extremist views.”
Tandy Lau is a Report for America corps member who writes about public safety for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep him writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/amnews1.
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