Does the First Amendment protect blueprints for 3-D printed guns?

Are the blueprints for guns coming to a 3-D printer near you?

Right now the answer is still uncertain.

A federal judge blocked a Texas-based company from releasing the schematics, but there could be a long legal battle ahead.

Are blueprints for 3-D printed guns a form of self-expression? Does regulating these blueprints put America down a path for more regulation of speech in the future? Or is this a valid form of regulation because these plans have the potential to enable people who might not otherwise have legal access to obtaining a firearm, to get one?

MPR News Host Kerri Miller spoke with two guests about the legal uncertainty surrounding 3d printed guns:

Robert Spitzer is the Chair of the political science department at SUNY Cortland and author of "Guns Across America"

Paul Barrett is the deputy director of NYU's Stern Center for Business and Human Rights and the author of "Glock: The Rise of America's Gun."

Use the audio player above to hear the full discussion

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