Cody WIlson v State Department

DOJ, SAF REACH SETTLEMENT IN DEFENSE DISTRIBUTED LAWSUIT

For Immediate Release Contact: Alan Gottlieb (425) 454-7012

BELLEVUE, WA – The Department of Justice and Second Amendment Foundation have reached a settlement in SAF’s lawsuit on behalf of Cody Wilson and Defense Distributed over free speech issues related to 3-D files and other information that may be used to manufacture lawful firearms.
SAF and Defense Distributed had filed suit against the State Department under the Obama administration, challenging a May 2013 attempt to control public speech as an export under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), a Cold War-era law intended to control exports of military articles.
Under terms of the settlement, the government has agreed to waive its prior restraint against the plaintiffs, allowing them to freely publish the 3-D files and other information at issue. The government has also agreed to pay a significant portion of the plaintiffs’ attorney’s fees, and to return $10,000 in State Department registration dues paid by Defense Distributed as a result of the prior restraint.
Significantly, the government expressly acknowledges that non-automatic firearms up to .50-caliber – including modern semi-auto sporting rifles such as the popular AR-15 and similar firearms – are not inherently military.
“Not only is this a First Amendment victory for free speech, it also is a devastating blow to the gun prohibition lobby,” noted SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “For years, anti-gunners have contended that modern semi-automatic sport-utility rifles are so-called ‘weapons of war,’ and with this settlement, the government has acknowledged they are nothing of the sort.
“Under this settlement,” he continued, “the government will draft and pursue regulatory amendments that eliminate ITAR control over the technical information at the center of this case. They will transfer export jurisdiction to the Commerce Department, which does not impose prior restraint on public speech. That will allow Defense Distributed and SAF to publish information about 3-D technology.”
The Second Amendment Foundation (www.saf.org) is the nation’s oldest and largest tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group focusing on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess firearms. Founded in 1974, The Foundation has grown to more than 600,000 members and supporters and conducts many programs designed to better inform the public about the consequences of gun control.
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I'm pleased to report that we've reached a favorable settlement in Defense Distributed v. State Department, the so-called "3-D printed guns" case. The government will pay our client, and lift the prior restraint. 1/

The government avoided a preliminary injunction only by avoiding an examination of who was likely to succeed on the merits. With the merits in play, suddenly, the "national security" concerns faded away. Congrats to my clients and our amazing team! 2/

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motorcoachdoug said:

So can this be used in the next MGA session when we go before the committee and tell them hey the US GOV said AR-15 is not a military weapon ? Just an idea and food for thought that we can use this case law before the MGA.

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DOJ, SAF REACH SETTLEMENT IN DEFENSE DISTRIBUTED LAWSUIT​

BELLEVUE, WA – The Department of Justice and Second Amendment Foundation have reached a settlement in SAF’s lawsuit on behalf of Cody Wilson and Defense Distributed over free speech issues related to 3-D files and other information that may be used to manufacture lawful firearms.

SAF and Defense Distributed had filed suit against the State Department under the Obama administration, challenging a May 2013 attempt to control public speech as an export under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), a Cold War-era law intended to control exports of military articles.
Under terms of the settlement, the government has agreed to waive its prior restraint against the plaintiffs, allowing them to freely publish the 3-D files and other information at issue. The government has also agreed to pay a significant portion of the plaintiffs’ attorney’s fees, and to return $10,000 in State Department registration dues paid by Defense Distributed as a result of the prior restraint.

Significantly, the government expressly acknowledges that non-automatic firearms up to .50-caliber – including modern semi-auto sporting rifles such as the popular AR-15 and similar firearms – are not inherently military.
“Not only is this a First Amendment victory for free speech, it also is a devastating blow to the gun prohibition lobby,” noted SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “For years, anti-gunners have contended that modern semi-automatic sport-utility rifles are so-called ‘weapons of war,’ and with this settlement, the government has acknowledged they are nothing of the sort.

“Under this settlement,” he continued, “the government will draft and pursue regulatory amendments that eliminate ITAR control over the technical information at the center of this case. They will transfer export jurisdiction to the Commerce Department, which does not impose prior restraint on public speech. That will allow Defense Distributed and SAF to publish information about 3-D technology.”

The Second Amendment Foundation (www.saf.org) is the nation's oldest and largest tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group focusing on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess firearms. Founded in 1974, The Foundation has grown to more than 650,000 members and supporters and conducts many programs designed to better inform the public about the consequences of gun control.

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< Please e-mail, distribute, and circulate to friends and family >
Copyright © 2018 Second Amendment Foundation, All Rights Reserved.
Second Amendment Foundation
James Madison Building
12500 N.E. Tenth Place
Bellevue, WA 98005 Voice: 425-454-7012
Toll Free: 800-426-4302
FAX: 425-451-3959
email: InformationRequest@saf.org

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Quote of the day—Rutrow

Posted on July 12, 2018 by Joe
The way the recording industry killed Napster in the ’90’s was by proliferating file sharing network with defective music files. People got sick of music that had random gaps of silence interspersed during the songs. Unless you were REALLY cheap, you went ahead and spent the $0.99 for the quality version.
How about distributing gun design files with fatal flaws engineered in? The yokels who download these plans would be easily identifiable by eye patches and the lack of several fingers.
Rutrow
July 7, 2018
Comment to Does an Arkansas-born anarchist spell the end of gun control with printable firearms?
[Anti-gun people want gun owners to be maimed and/or killed.—Joe]

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DC-W said:

https://defcad.comhas made its return. Upload function online now. Downloads available 8/1

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platoonDaddy said:

Would appreciate a readers digest version of defcad. I am not familiar with the site.

Thanks

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DEFCAD is an online library and CAD model repository dedicated to the advancement of American gunsmithing and the expansion of the Second Amendment. Users, professionals and amateurs alike, are invited to download and contribute small arms technical data without restriction.

The site is administered by Defense Distributed and legally authorized to commit its hosted materials to the public domain by the US Department of State.

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"I consider it a truly grand thing," Wilson says. "It will be an irrevocable part of political life that guns are downloadable, and we helped to do that."

No, *******, my ability to download Paula Abdul's "Vibeology" in my sweatpants at 2 a.m. is a "grand thing." You're just going to help innocent people die. Now excuse me while I go scream into a pillow.

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