State Superior Court Judge Barbara Bellis dismissed on Oct. 14 a lawsuit filed by several Newtown families against Remington Arms, the manufacturer of the rifle used in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre.
The wrongful-death suit argued that Remington was responsible for selling what it termed a semi-automatic rifle, used by Adam Lanza to kill 20 first-graders and six educators.
The judge agreed with Remington attorneys that the lawsuit should be dismissed under the federal Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, which protects gun makers from liability when their firearms are used in crimes.
“While the families are obviously disappointed with the judge’s decision, this is not the end of the fight,” said Joshua Koskoff, an attorney for the families. “We will appeal this decision immediately and continue our work to help prevent the next Sandy Hook from happening.”
Democratic Senators Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy and Rep. Elizabeth Esty (D-5th District), all major gun control proponents, released a statement saying that the aforementioned federal law “denies victims of gun violence their fair day in court. This misapplied and misguided law protects gun manufacturers from liability even for dangerous and irresponsible practices ”“ an unprecedented and indefensible legal shield available to no other American industry. We disagree with today”™s decision and will continue our fight to repeal this reprehensible law.”
