A federal judge on Wednesday threw out a lawsuit by a group of gun manufacturers, distributors and retailers challenging New York’s ‘Gun Industry Liability Law’, a measure former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law last July that allows the state and people affected by gun violence to sue the industry.
"We passed this first-in-the-nation law for one reason: to protect New Yorkers from gun violence and hold bad actors in the gun industry who help facilitate that violence accountable," said State Senator Zellnor Myrie of Brooklyn who, along with Assemblymember Patricia Fahy, sponsored the Gun Industry Liability Law.
"We are glad to see that the Court agreed with us and commend our Attorney General for vigorously defending the constitutionality of the law and her ability to hold these bad actors accountable."
New York Attorney General Letitia James in a statement called the ruling "a moment of light and hope."
The Gun Industry Liability Law was upheld by Judge Mae D'Agostino in U.S. District Court just one day after a gunman in Uvalde, Texas killed 19 children and two adults at an elementary school as well as a racially-motivated mass shooting at a grocery store in Buffalo the previous week-- one that claimed the lives of 10 people by a white supremacist.
"New York has led the nation on gun legislation — and in the face of more devastating mass shootings in recent weeks, we must be more vigilant than ever in helping to keep New Yorkers safe from the scourge of gun violence," Fahy said.
The law allows firearm sellers, manufacturers and distributors to be sued by the state, cities or individuals for creating a "public nuisance" that endangers the public's safety and health.
The gun industry group argued the law wrongly imposes liability on companies operating anywhere in the country that make, sell or market guns or ammunition that are misused by criminals in New York.
But D'Agostino rejected arguments that the measure conflicted with the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, stating the law "in no way differs from the extraterritorial effect of the myriad of safety state laws and regulations with which every industry must comply."
