The nation's high court this week chose to turn away a challenge brought by a gun industry trade group against a dangerous new law in New York that targets the industry.
The Supreme Court, in its orders list on Monday, declined to hear the case of National Shooting Sports Foundation v. Letitia James, Attorney General of New York (25-1026). The challenge was to New York's 2021 "Public Nuisance" law (S.7196/A.6762), which, in the words of then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo, at the time of adoption, would "reinstate the public nuisance liability for gun manufacturers."
In the challenge, the NSSF pointed out that the 2005 federal Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act protects firearms industry members against frivolous lawsuits, a common tactic used by Brady, Everytown, and other anti-gun groups to bankrupt the industry through lawfare. The New York law unconstitutionally ignores PLCAA, argued NSSF.
"This law is based on the same legal understanding that would allow victims of drunk drivers to sue Ford and Budweiser for the criminal actions of an individual," said Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF senior vice president and general counsel in 2021 on the subject. "This law is not legal accountability. It is political posturing."
Other plaintiffs to the suit alongside NSSF included Beretta, Glock, Ruger, Smith & Wesson, and a number of large distributors such as Davidson's, Lipsey's, RSR, and Sports South.
The reaction from anti-gun groups to the news was one of excitement, with Giffords Executive Director Emma Brown saying, "Congress’s gift of broad immunity to the gun industry was the biggest special interest giveaway in American history, and it must be repealed."
Meanwhile, current New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) released a statement putting the industry on notice, calling the Supreme Court's disinterest in the challenge this week a "massive victory in our fight against gun violence."
To be clear, PLCAA does not provide the American gun industry – ranging from small mom-and-pop local gun stores to publicly traded manufacturers – wholesale immunity from all lawsuits. As NSSF points out, the law simply guards against agenda-driven lawsuits brought against a manufacturer or distributor over the criminal or wrongful misuse of their product.
To help strengthen PLCAA, 16 Senate Republicans on Capitol Hill last week introduced the Stopping Harmful and Outrageous Torts, or SHOT, Act.
“Litigious activists should not be allowed to bankrupt lawful businesses for crimes they did not commit,” said U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), a sponsor of the new legislation. “The SHOT Act would reinforce Congress’s original intent by strengthening federal protections for members of the firearms industry, stopping meritless lawsuits, and preventing costly legal abuse."
According to the NSSF, companies in the U.S. that manufacture, distribute, and sell firearms, ammunition, and hunting equipment employ as many as 150,668 people and generate another 232,327 jobs in supplier and ancillary industries. All told, the industry has a $91 billion impact on the U.S. economy, while over $11 billion of that goes back to the government via assorted business and excise taxes. In New York alone, the industry is responsible for as much as $3.63 billion in total economic activity in the state.
Banner image: A stainless S&W Model 64-1 K-Frame .38 Special 4-inch heavy barrel with Pachy grips, an HKS-10 speed loader, and Winchester Silvertips, a real classic wheel gun. (Photo: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
