Dave Hardy on Pistol Gripped Shotguns

I do not recall a single criminal use of artillery in the United States, by someone outside of the government.

Interesting issue ... and here I'm referring to shotguns which were originally made with a rear pistol grip in place of a buttstock.

Under the Gun Control Act, the issue seems simple: they are pistols. Very big pistols, but pistols. Thus they have been treated, and sold in large numbers over quite a few years.

The National Firearms Act, however, poses a problem. Under it, they are not shotguns, since the definition of "shotgun" includes "designed to be fired from the shoulder." 26 U.S.C. §5845(f).

The problem is posed by a different part of the NFA, created when it was amended in 1968. Those amendments created a class of firearms designated "destructive devices," and really aimed at artillery pieces. As you might expect, these were VERY tightly regulated, nevermind that criminal use of artillery wasn't exactly a big problem.

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