Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Denver news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Des Moines news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Minneapolis-St. Paul news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Tampa Bay news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Charlotte news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Photo: Toya Sarno Jordan/Getty Images
Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Thursday warned that the Justice Department will "vigorously enforce" the federal prohibition of producing undetectable 3D-printed firearms "to the fullest extent."
"We will not stand for the evasion, especially the flaunting, of current law and will take action to ensure that individuals who violate the law by making plastic firearms and rendering them undetectable, will be prosecuted to the fullest extent."— Sessions said in a statement
The backdrop: This stern caution comes a day after Sessions' own department asked a federal court to lift an injunction that blocks the public from downloading the blueprints. Almost a dozen states, led by Washington, have sued the State Department for allowing a pro-gun group to publish the files online, arguing it’s a threat to public safety and that terrorists could use undetectable plastic weapons to evade detection.
President Trump had expressed skepticism over 3D-printed guns, which had prompted widespread debate and outrage. “I am looking into 3-D Plastic Guns being sold to the public. Already spoke to NRA, doesn’t seem to make much sense!” Trump tweeted in July.
A new Axios/SurveyMonkey poll this week found that eight out of 10 Americans say they believe 3D-printed gun blueprints should not be available online, a rare consensus on gun policy that cuts across party and ideological lines.