HARTFORD – The state Senate gave final passage early Friday to legislation that will allow victims of gun violence to bring civil actions against gun manufacturers, distributors, or retailers who fail to implement reasonable safeguards to ensure their products do not fall into the wrong hands.
The Senate voted 25-11 to pass House Bill 7042, which was approved by the House last month and now heads to Gov. Ned Lamont for his signature. The Democrats fought back 18 amendments proposed by the GOP.
The bill allows for legal action against firearm manufacturers, retailers, and distributors who fail to adopt reasonable controls to prevent the sale of firearms to ineligible purchasers, straw buyers, traffickers, or individuals the seller has reasonable cause to believe will use the weapon to commit a crime or harm others.
“Despite the deadly nature of their products, gun manufacturers and sellers have enjoyed broad immunity to civil action, which has allowed them to turn a blind eye to dangerous sales practices that all too often end in tragedy,” said Senate President Pro Tempore Martin M. Looney (D–New Haven). “This bill holds the industry accountable by giving victims an opportunity to recover appropriate damages from an irresponsible gun industry member.”
Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff (D-Norwalk) made the case for the legislation after its passage.
“The gun industry has operated with impunity for too long, shielded from responsibility while our communities pay the price,”, said. “This bill pulls back that curtain. If you’re marketing firearms recklessly or willfully ignoring where your products end up, you’re going to be held accountable.”
The legislation leverages an exception in the federal Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), a 2005 law that generally shields the gun industry from civil lawsuits. The “predicate exception” within PLCAA allows states to enforce statutes that establish a standard of conduct for firearm manufacturers and sellers. The bill does not single out the industry; rather it treats them like others by removing part of a shield that no other industry benefits from.
GOP opposition
Senior Deputy Senate Republican Leader Rob Sampson (R-Wolcott) strongly opposed the Senate’s passage of HB 7042, which he considers to be the worst anti-Second Amendment piece of legislation in the Connecticut General Assembly’s history.
“This bill does not address gun violence, or criminals who choose to commit it,” Sampson said. “This bill represents a concerted national effort to effectively litigate the firearm industry out of business.
“The message is clear: If you manufacture, sell, or promote legal firearms in Connecticut, you are no longer welcome here. It will have a chilling effect on the state’s firearm industry, and thus your innate right to self-defense through the Second Amendment, the likes of which we have never seen. I hope that common sense prevails with a veto by the governor.”
Through H.B. 7042, Connecticut joins nine other states that have taken action to expand the ability of victims to sue the firearm industry for illegal conduct, according to the Giffords Law Center.
The bill also closes a loophole in Connecticut law that allowed individuals convicted of certain violent misdemeanors in other states to receive pistol permits here, even though a comparable conviction in Connecticut would disqualify them. This change ensures consistent treatment of applicants regardless of where the conviction occurred.
