Gun makers lose problem to New York law permitting lawsuits in opposition to business

Weapons confiscated at New York City public schools are displayed at a news convention with Mayor Eric Adams at police headquarters to speak about weapons in public faculties in New York City on Could 25, 2022 in New York Metropolis.

Spencer Platt | Getty Photos

A federal judge on Wednesday threw out a lawsuit by a gaggle of gun producers, distributors and retailers challenging the constitutionality of a New York legislation that permits the state and other people affected by gun violence to sue the industry.

U.S. District Judge Mae D'Agostino in Albany rejected a request by the Nationwide Capturing Sports activities Basis and gun manufacturers, together with Smith & Wesson and Sturm, Ruger & Co, to enjoin enforcement of the statute.

The ruling came a day after a gunman killed 19 children and two adults at a Texas elementary college, the most recent in a spate of mass shootings, prompting renewed calls by Democrats for tougher gun rules.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation, a trade group for the firearms trade, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Democratic former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo final July signed into regulation a measure that seeks to beat legal hurdles which have largely shielded the industry from lawsuits related to gun violence.

The regulation permits firearm sellers, manufacturers and distributors to be sued by the state, cities or individuals for making a "public nuisance" that endangers the general public's security and health.

The gun trade group argued the regulation wrongly imposes legal responsibility on firms working anywhere in the country that make, promote or market guns or ammunition which might be misused by criminals in New York.