NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED FEDERAL LAWYERS
What is destructive device charges
|Thanks for visiting Spodek Law Group. We’re a second-generation law firm managed by Todd Spodek, with over 40 years of combined experience handling federal firearms cases others won’t touch. You’ve probably heard about some of our high-profile clients – Anna Delvey from the Netflix series, the Ghislaine Maxwell juror misconduct case, even Alec Baldwin’s stalking matter. If you’re reading this, you’re likely facing destructive device charges or know someone who is – and you need to understand what that actually means before prosecutors use your confusion against you.
Destructive device charges are federal firearms violations under the National Firearms Act. The government prosecutes people for possessing, manufacturing, or transferring bombs, grenades, rockets, mines, large-bore weapons, or parts to build them – without registering these items with ATF and paying the required $200 tax. Basic violations carry up to 10 years in federal prison and $250,000 in fines under 26 U.S.C. § 5861. That number jumps to a mandatory minimum 30 years if you possessed the device during a drug trafficking crime or crime of violence, and life imprisonment for a second offense under 18 U.S.C. § 924(c).
What Actually Counts as a Destructive Device
Federal law breaks destructive devices into three categories under 26 U.S.C. § 5845(f). First category – explosive devices. Bombs, grenades, mines, poison gas devices all qualify automatically. So do rockets with propellant charges over four ounces and missiles with explosive charges over one-quarter ounce. People assume these are obviously illegal, but we’ve represented clients who kept grenades from military service or made pipe bombs without understanding the federal implications.
The second category catches people off guard. Any weapon that fires projectiles by explosive action with a barrel bore exceeding one-half inch diameter is a destructive device. That’s anything over .50 caliber – unless it’s a shotgun the ATF recognizes for sporting purposes. This is where collectors and enthusiasts get prosecuted. Large-bore antique cannons, certain firearms imported from overseas, even some specialty hunting rifles fall into this category. You think you bought a legal firearm, then ATF shows up saying you possess an unregistered destructive device.
Third category is parts and combinations. If you have parts designed or intended to convert something into a destructive device, and a destructive device can be readily assembled from those parts, you’re in violation. Federal prosecutors love this category because they don’t need to prove you actually built anything – just that you had the parts and capability.
The Registration Requirement People Ignore
Every destructive device must be registered with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. You pay a $200 tax, submit fingerprints and photographs, go through a background check, and wait months for ATF approval. Only then can you legally possess the item. This applies whether you’re manufacturing a new device, transferring ownership from someone else, or bringing something into the country.
Most of our clients had no idea this requirement existed when they were arrested. They bought a large-bore firearm at a gun show and the seller never mentioned NFA registration. They assembled a flare launcher for marine safety and ATF later classified it as a destructive device. They inherited military ordnance from a deceased relative’s estate. In every scenario, ignorance doesn’t matter to federal prosecutors – you possessed an unregistered destructive device, period.
ATF enforcement on destructive devices has gotten more aggressive in 2025. They’re tracking online purchases of parts and components, monitoring gun forums and social media, even reclassifying items that were previously legal. We had a client prosecuted for owning two flare launchers he’d used for years on his boat – ATF suddenly decided they qualified as destructive devices and he faced 10 years in federal prison for items that sat in his storage locker.
Two Completely Different Sentencing Scenarios
Basic destructive device violations under 26 U.S.C. § 5861 and § 5871 carry statutory maximums of 10 years imprisonment and $10,000 in fines. But federal sentencing law allows fines up to $250,000 for individuals and $500,000 for organizations. Your actual sentence depends on the Sentencing Guidelines – your offense level, criminal history, acceptance of responsibility, and whether you cooperate with investigators. We’ve gotten clients sentenced to probation for unregistered antique weapons. We’ve also seen judges impose the full 10 years for people who made functional explosive devices.
Everything changes if your destructive device connects to another federal crime. Section 924(c) imposes mandatory minimum sentences when you possess a destructive device during and in relation to a crime of violence or drug trafficking crime. The mandatory minimum is 30 years – the judge has no discretion to go lower. If you have a prior conviction under 924(c), it’s mandatory life imprisonment. These sentences stack on top of whatever you get for the underlying offense.
Federal prosecutors use 924(c) as leverage in nearly every drug case where they find any weapon. You’re charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, agents execute a search warrant and find a grenade in your garage – even if that grenade had nothing to do with drug dealing, even if you forgot it was there, you’re looking at 30 years mandatory on top of your drug sentence. This is why cooperation becomes so important in these cases. A 5K motion for substantial assistance is often the only way to get below that mandatory minimum.
Common Scenarios Leading to Charges
Homemade explosive devices account for a large portion of prosecutions. Someone builds a pipe bomb as a “project,” posts about it online, and ATF opens an investigation. Military surplus creates another common scenario – veterans bring back grenades or artillery shells as souvenirs, family members inherit them, and you assume they’re deactivated and legal. ATF claims they can be readily converted back to functional status, or the deactivation wasn’t done to ATF standards. Large-bore firearms prosecutions hit collectors who buy antique cannons at estate sales or import specialty firearms from Europe without understanding NFA regulations. Unless you registered it with ATF and paid the tax, you’re in violation – even if the firearm sits unused in a collection.
Why These Cases Require Federal Defense Experience
At Spodek Law Group – we understand that federal prosecutors view destructive device cases as easy wins. The evidence is usually physical and undeniable – agents found the item in your possession. But these cases have defenses that generic criminal lawyers miss. We challenge whether the item actually meets the statutory definition of a destructive device. We argue the ATF classification was incorrect or changed retroactively. We demonstrate you lacked knowing possession because someone else put the item in your home or vehicle. We negotiate for substantial assistance departures when clients can provide information about suppliers or other investigations.
Many, many, years of experience matter in these prosecutions. We’ve handled cases involving homemade explosives, military ordnance, large-bore firearms, and devices ATF reclassified without notice. We know which prosecutors will negotiate and which want prison time regardless of circumstances. We know which judges understand the difference between dangerous criminals and collectors who made technical violations. We know when to take cases to trial and when cooperation is your only realistic option.
If federal agents have contacted you about destructive devices, or executed a search warrant and seized items from your property, you need representation now – not after you’ve already given statements or agreed to cooperate without a deal in place. Every word you say to investigators gets used against you at sentencing even if it seems helpful at the time. Destructive device charges carry some of the harshest sentences in federal criminal law – especially when 924(c) mandatory minimums apply. At Spodek Law Group, we’ve represented clients facing these exact charges, and we know what strategies actually work when your freedom is measured in decades.