This is the Cato Daily Podcast for Tuesday, August 14th, 2018. I'm Caleb Brown.

Take the very typical misunderstandings and poorly vetted public information about guns in the United States

and add the wrinkle of 3D printing. In the ongoing legal fight over defense distributed,

plans for 3D printed guns and the very substantial First Amendment implications.

Josh Blackman, Defense Distributed's attorney, is a busy man. We spoke yesterday.

Cody Wilson operates Defense distributed and he has for some time published documents on the internet that allow people to produce parts for guns with 3D printers.

Where, and a Washington judge has essentially said no you can't do that and anyone who's

seen the Big Lebowski knows that the Supreme Court has roundly rejected prior restraint on Mr Wilson's speech.

So what where does that stand now and how can because we have to keep in mind, this is a First Amendment issue.

This is not a Second Amendment issue.

Well, thanks for having me back on, Caleb.

The story here begins about a month ago. the federal government decided to reach a settlement with Cody Wilson and Defense

distributed. I am one of Cody's attorneys. And on July 27th, we were going to close a settlement, and Cody was going to receive a license to post certain files on the internet.

In addition, the government was going to make a temporary modification to its regulations to allow not just Cody, but all US persons to post these files in the internet.

It wouldn't be that easy. At the last minute the Brady campaign Every

Half of Gun Safety and the Giffords Group tried to intervene in our case in

Texas and block the settlement. I was able to argue that in our

Texas and block the settlement. I was able to argue that temporary restraining order and was able to defeat it. The judge denied it.

And as a result, our settlement went to effect. So that Friday evening on the 27th, Cody posted his files to the internet and they were downloaded thousands and thousands of times.

Over the next few days, we will be soon thousands and thousands of times.

Over the next few days we will be sued in courts in Washington, in New Jersey, and in Pennsylvania.

Very state attorney's general tried to stop us from posting these files.

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