The Second Amendment Implications of Regulating 3D Printed Firearms

Abstract

3D printed firearms have arrived, and commentators are beginning to ask whether and how this new technology can be regulated. An inevitable question that governments and courts will need to confront when considering restrictions on 3D printed firearms is whether these restrictions violate the Second Amendment. In this paper, I argue that most restrictions on 3D printed firearms would survive Second Amendment challenges. In carrying out this argument, I consider a complete ban on the manufacturing and possession of 3D printed firearms, and conclude that even this complete ban would be likely to survive Second Amendment challenges. Because these particularly restrictive bans are likely to survive, I conclude that most restrictions on 3D printed firearms will survive similar challenges. The main obstacle for governments will not be overcoming Second Amendment arguments against restrictions on 3D printed firearms, but ensuring that these restrictions are effective.

Keywords: constitutional law, law and technology, Second Amendment, 3D Printing