The largest manufacturer of “ghost gun” kits and parts has agreed to end sales in California as part of a settlement of a lawsuit brought by the Los Angeles City Attorney, the Washington Post reports. The deal with the company, Polymer 80, includes $5 million in penalties for various alleged violations.
The LA DA is working to get untraceable guns off the streets as part of the continuing effort to hold criminals accountable for gun violence, but also to hold accountable those companies that make evading the law possible. Ghost guns are typically untraceable weapons put together by independent parts or as kits that skirt laws regarding the sale and licensing of firearms. The number of ghost guns seized by law enforcement because they have been used in crimes has risen 700% since 2017.
California had a number of incidents in which the perpetrators used ghost guns, including an assassination attempt on two LA County sheriff’s deputies who were both shot in the head by an assailant using a ghost gun made primarily with Polymer 80 parts; the deputies came to a separate settlement with the company. Washington, DC recently came to a $4 million settlement with the company for the role its products have played in gun violence.