Violation of 2nd Amendment Rights

06/11/21

     The New York legislature has recently passed a bill which unapologetically violates its citizens’ Second Amendment right “to keep and bear Arms.” This bill is a clear effort to circumvent the 2005 Protection of Lawful Commerce Law, which protects firearm manufacturers and dealers from most lawsuits related to the use of their products. In particular, the 2005 law provides immunity to manufacturers and dealers of firearms in instances where their products are used in a shooting. This new bill upends such efforts and seeks to penalize firearm manufacturers and dealers when their products are used in shootings.

     While a noble effort – proponents of the bill claim that if manufacturers and dealers no longer have blanket immunity in lawsuits, they will make an extra effort to ensure that their products are not being given to distributors who sell firearms without abiding by the legal safety requirements – this bill is per se unconstitutional. As Assemb. Robert Smullen rightfully notes “the intention is simply to deny the right to bear arms by law-abiding citizens…taken all together, it’s a violation of the Second Amendment rights of our citizens.” In particular, this bill is unnecessarily broad and over-arching. This sweeping bill impacts all manufacturers and dealers in an effort to make the few unprincipled ones more accountable to adhere to the firearm safety laws. In fact, according to a state Attorney General’s Office report, 74% of deaths caused by shootings in New York involve firearms obtained from a few distributors who provide most of the guns used during crimes. It is untenable and unconstitutional to subject all New York gun manufacturers and dealers to potential lawsuits – which will inevitably impact citizens’ abilities to obtain firearms in this state – in an effort to target a few bad apples.

     We at the Litt Law Group are here to protect our clients’ constitutional rights. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.