Sen. Ron Latz, DFL- Saint Louis Park, rises for a point of order while debating a motion to refer a bill to the floor during session Monday, March 3, 2025. Photo by A.J. Olmscheid/Senate Media Services.
Sen. Ron Latz, DFL-St. Louis Park, pledged to introduce legislation next year closing a “loophole” in Minnesota’s regulation of so-called ghost guns — untraceable firearms without serial numbers.
The declaration comes after the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled that state law doesn’t clearly restrict Minnesotans from possessing guns without serial numbers. The high court stated in its ruling that Minnesotans can possess a gun without a serial number as long as it complies with federal law.
The case originates from a 2022 car crash in Fridley. A state trooper responding to the crash found a Glock pistol without a serial number in the car, and the driver — Logan Vagle — was charged with felony possession of a self-assembled gun without a serial number.
The Minnesota Supreme Court on Wednesday reversed an appeals court decision that upheld the felony charge and sent the case back down to the district court for further review.
“Minnesota has not established an independent firearm serial number regime, and federal law does not require that Vagle’s pistol have a serial number,” Associate Justice Paul Thissen wrote in the majority opinion, joined by justices Anne McKeig, Gordon Moore and Sarah Hennesy.
Chief Justice Natalie Hudson wrote the dissent, which was joined by Associate Justice Karl Procaccini.
In a statement, the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus praised the court’s ruling and said, in particular, it will impact lawful gun owners who manufacture firearms for personal use or own firearms manufactured before 1968 — the year the feds mandated gun manufacturers to include serial numbers on their firearms.
“Minnesotans who lawfully build personally manufactured firearms and possess pre-1968 firearms have always acted within the law. The court’s decision … confirmed that fact,” said Gun Owners Caucus Chair Bryan Strawser in a statement.
“In the end, the final decision on whether and how to regulate ghost guns rests with the Legislature,” Thissen wrote in his opinion.
Latz, who serves as chair of the Senate’s Public Safety Committee, interpreted the Supreme Court opinion as a call to action.
“No one could’ve foreseen a world where you could print the parts to make a gun at home, but that’s the world we live in today,” Latz said in a statement. “This decision makes it clear that our state gun laws need to reflect this new reality and the increasing prevalence of ghost guns.”
It’s unclear whether this Latz’s proposal will gain bipartisan support, which will be required to pass the Minnesota House and also the Senate, depending on the results of two special elections. The House is expected to return to a tie between Republicans and Democrats after a special election.
