Courts

Oh No, A New York Judge Didn't Let Gunmakers Avoid Legal Responsibility For Our Dead!

What's next? Suing car makers for releasing dangerous products into commerce?

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Judge holding gavel in courtroom

(Image via Getty)

Good news for New Yorkers that would rather accountability to thoughts and prayers the next time someone gets gunned down in the street.

A federal judge Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit from gun industry groups challenging a New York law that permits civil lawsuits against companies for conduct found to have endangered public safety.

Yes, you read that right. Gun industry groups went to court attempting to get rid of a law that would hold them accountable for endangering public safety. The judge dismissed this and they are less than happy about it.

An executive for a firearms trade association that was challenging the New York law said that the group was “disappointed” by the ruling.

“We respectfully disagree with the court’s decision and plan to appeal this decision,” Lawrence G. Keane, National Shooting Sports Foundation senior vice president and general counsel, said in a statement.

Remember when cigarette companies made targeted ads to children? They still target them now, but the restricted means of doing so wasn’t because Big Tobacco had a sudden change of heart. It was because of government regulation. And for that, our kids’ lungs are a little safer. A little.

I commend the judge for keeping a legal avenue for suing gun manufacturers alive. And honestly, more needs to be done. People are so desperate for ways to confront our growing number of gun deaths that they are asking for thought-provoking episodes about children being murdered in elementary school as a last ditch effort.

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In the asker’s defense, TVs shows may end up being the only way that we can sway the thoughts and actions of the people we elect to govern us, given that directly protesting in a way that ensures they hear our voices appears to be a faux pas.

Get to suing those manufacturers before The Onion has reason to write that same damned article again.

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Judge Tosses Challenge To New York Law That Opens Gun Industry Up To Civil Lawsuits [CNN]

Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s.  He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who cannot swim, a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at cwilliams@abovethelaw.com and by tweet at @WritesForRent.

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