Judge rules in Sig’s case against ATF: It’s a silencer

By Patriot Outdoor News

A federal judge denied gun maker Sig Sauer’s claim that the government “acted in an arbitrary and capricious manner” when it labeled its product a silencer.

New Hampshire District Judge Paul Barbadoro issued an opinion Thursday on the company’s administrative case against Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives and granted the agency’s motion for summary judgement.

“[T]he ATF acted rationally in concluding that Sig Sauer intended the baffle core to be used only as a silencer part because the agency pointed to substantial evidence in the record to support its determination,” Barbadoro said.

The judge agreed with the ATF that the device — the core component to a silencer welded onto the barrel of a carbine — was only intended to be a component in a silencer and that Sig did not intend it to serve as a muzzle brake.

He pointed to the ATF’s evidence showing similarities between a silencer and the device, and differences between common muzzle brake designs and the device.

“[T]he ATF was presented with conflicting evidence as to whether Sig Sauer intended the baffle core to be used only as a silencer,” he said. “It considered the relevant evidence using the correct legal standard and came to a rational …read more

Source:: Patriot Outdoor News