WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 06 1999

[WND Exclusive ]

Who’s next in crosshairs?
Despite denial, gun control group seeks broad reach ——————————————
By Jon E. Dougherty
? 1999 WorldNetDaily.com

A spokesman for the Center to Prevent Handgun Violence says a recent court ruling allowing lawsuits against a single gun maker to proceed does not signal an assault on the entire firearms industry. But one of the same organizations’
directors says just the opposite — that the gun industry as a whole can no longer “escape accountability for conduct that endangers us all.”

Brian Morton, a spokesman for CPHV, told WorldNetDaily that the California case and other industry lawsuits “are two completely different issues. This case has nothing to do with the cities that are currently engaged in lawsuits against the rest of the gun manufacturers.” The Legal Action Project of CPHV, said Morton, which
acted as primary counsel in the case, sought only to demonstrate to the court the culpability of gun maker Navegar (Intratec Inc.) when it manufactured and marketed the Tec-9 model semi-automatic pistol.

On July 1, 1993, Gian Luigi Ferri used two of the weapons, equipped with high capacity ammunition magazines, to kill eight people in a San Francisco office building. CPHV, along with several other Bay Area law firms, filed suit against Navegar on behalf of Marilyn Merrill, Stephen Sposato, Michelle Scully and Carol Kingsley, surviving spouses of four of the victims, as well as Carol Ernsting, mother of another victim.

Dubbed California 101, the case will now go back to trial, Morton said, though no court date has been set. Morton did not speculate about how long the continuing legal process would take, but did say he expected an appeal from Intratec if the court ruled against the company in a new trial.

Intratec, of Miami, Fla., was contacted by
WorldNetDaily, but declined comment while the case is still pending. The gun maker has not contacted the Legal Action Project of CPHV to negotiate a settlement either, according to Morton.

Although Morton emphasized that his organization was addressing one specific case — Navegar’s — rather than the entirety of the gun industry, Dennis Henigan, director of the Legal Action Project, and the one who spearheaded the five-year litigation, tells a very different story.

“No longer will the gun industry escape accountability for conduct that endangers us all,” Henigan said. “The California appeals court ruling that a gun manufacturer can be held liable for a criminal act committed with its product is an historic victory for gun violence victims and for the future of litigation against the gun industry,” Henigan said in CPHV’s press release on the case. Media reports echoed Henigan’s expansive interpretation: “The decision has far-reaching implications for the 28 cities and counties which have filed suit against gun manufacturers, dealers and retailers in the last year — lawsuits which attempt to hold the gun industry liable for the irresponsible design, manufacture and distribution of their products,” U.S. Newswire reported after quoting Henigan. “Particularly in California, where 12 cities and counties including Los Angeles and San Francisco filed suit last spring, the appellate court decision provides legal precedent for finding that the gun industry can be held accountable for irresponsible conduct leading to death and injury.”

“The California jurisdictions are among the 23 cities and counties represented by the Center’s Legal Action Project,” U.S. Newswire said.

Morton defended his group’s legal representation in the Ferri case, saying, “Navegar designed this weapon to be spray-fired. It has no civilian use whatsoever.”

“Even the gun dealer that sold the Tec-9 to Mr. Ferri told him that if he were to take this gun to any gun range and only wanted to plink cans, he’d be laughed out of town,” he said. “This gun was marketed and sold as an assault-type pistol, and was even marketed with ‘finish that is resistant to fingerprints.’”

The National Rifle Association was contacted by WorldNetDaily but did not return phone calls for comment.
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Jon E. Dougherty is a staff writer for WorldNetDaily.