In a sweeping victory for gunmakers, a D.C. Superior Court judge on Monday threw out a lawsuit aimed at recovering damages from gun violence.
Judge Brook Hedge said that a law passed by Congress last year and intended to shield gunmakers from lawsuits should trump long-standing D.C. law holding the weapons industry responsible for gun violence.
A gun industry spokesman said the victory saves them from millions in damages.
“The judge upheld the law,” said National Rifle Association spokesman Andrew Arulanandam. “It’s a very narrowly worded law that any manufacturer who does not violate federal, state or local law won’t be [bothered] with these junk lawsuits.”
Monday’s decision closes down years of litigation filed by the District and gun-control advocates, who say that gunmakers are to blame for the mayhem that perennially disfigures the city.
Vincent Morris, spokesman for D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams, said Monday’s decision was “a setback. But Mayor Williams and other mayors across America will continue to try to keep deadly handguns off our streets and hold the manufacturers liable.”
