Utah supports gun-makers of assault style weapons
Sep 6, 2019, 9:16 AM | Updated: Dec 30, 2022, 11:27 am
FILE - In this April 10, 2013, file photo, a stag arms AR-15 rifle with 30 round, left, and 10 round magazines is displayed in New Britain, Conn. High-capacity magazines have been a common denominator in several mass killings in recent years, and lawmakers are making a renewed push to ban them. Nine states have passed laws restricting magazine capacity to 10 to 15 bullets, and the Democratic-led Congress is returning early from its summer recess this week to consider a similar ban at the federal level. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)
(AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)
SALT LAKE CITY — It’s all about the advertising as the state of Utah is throwing its weight behind gun-maker Remington Arms.
A Connecticut court sided with the families of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting in 2012 who are suing Remington Arms. The lawsuit claims the company marketed assault-style weapons to younger, at-risk males, like the AR-15 used to kill 20 first-graders and six educators.
Now, 10 states, including Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and West Virginia are teaming with the National Rifle Association and 22 Republican lawmakers to challenge the Connecticut court ruling.
They filed briefs with the US Supreme Court urging the justices to overturn the ruling, stating federal law shields gun-makers from liability when their weapons are used in crimes under The ‘Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act’ passed in 2005.
This law is widely criticized by gun control advocates as being too favorable to gun manufacturers. It’s been used in the past to ban lawsuits over other mass killings.
The Connecticut case is being closely followed by both sides as it could provide a road map to future lawsuits against gun-makers.
