Philadelphia sues ghost gun distributors after deadly mass shooting

Philadelphia officials on Wednesday announced two lawsuits against two suppliers of privately made firearms, also known as ghost guns, just two days after a gunman killed five and injured five others during a Monday shooting spree. 

The lawsuit announced by Mayor Jim Kenney said Polymer80, Inc. and JSD Supply are among the largest suppliers of ghost guns confiscated in Philadelphia. They are accused of perpetrating the city’s gun violence problem and threatening the public’s right to health and safety by marketing, selling, and dispersing unserialized ghost gun kits into the city. 

The city claims both companies ship gun parts to customers without conducting required background checks or verifying the identity or age of the purchasers. 

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“These untraceable weapons pose a dire threat to our public health and safety and are often used to inflict violence,” Kenney said. “We are holding these distributors accountable for supplying ghost guns into our streets and for the havoc they have wreaked in Philadelphia communities. 

The lawsuit alleges they undermine federal and state firearms laws by designing, manufacturing, selling and providing unserialized ghost gun kits and parts to buyers who do not undergo a background check.

City officials said ghost guns are widely available for purchase at gun shows without background checks just outside Philadelphia’s borders. 

The city is asking a judge to prohibit both companies from distributing untraceable ghost guns. JSD Supply declined to comment on the matter. Fox News Digital has reached out to Polymer80, Inc.

Nearly 10% of guns recovered by the Philadelphia Police Department over the past two years were made privately by individuals. 

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“As a result, ghost guns have become the weapon used by individuals who should never possess firearms. They are a dangerous tool in the hands of those that seek to do harm in our city, and can even end up in the hands of unassuming children.”

News of the lawsuit came two days after five people were killed and another five were wounded by gunfire in a mass shooting in the city’s Kingsessing neighborhood. 

Kimbrady Carriker, 40, appeared in court Wednesday on charges related to the 10 victims he allegedly shot while armed with an AR-style rifle and a handgun. He was also wearing a bulletproof vest during the chaos, authorities said. 

Authorities have said both weapons used in the shooting were privately manufactured.

He said Carriker targeted random victims, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner said Wednesday. The five deceased victims are Daujan Brown, 15; Joseph Wamah, Jr., 31; Lashyd Merritt, 20; Dymir Stanton, 29; and Ralph Moralis, 59. Multiple children were also injured by the gunfire, including a 2-year-old who was shot four times in the legs.

Four of the five gun violence survivors were in a white Jeep Cherokee when Carriker allegedly fired upon them. The 2-year-old child sustained gunshot wounds; a 33-year-old woman and another 2-year-old child sustained injuries from shattered glass.   

 

Carriker is charged with multiple counts of aggravated assault, simple assault, recklessly endangering another person, carrying firearms without a license, carrying firearms in public in the county of Philadelphia, and possession of an instrument of crime.   

Krasner also said Carriker identified as a man amid reports he dressed as a woman. He was ordered held without bail on each murder charge and $1.5 million bail on each attempted murder case.