Jury: Gun Industry Not Cause of Violence

Jury: Gun Industry Not Cause of Violence

By TOM HAYS
.c The Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) – Rejecting a lawsuit brought by the NAACP, a federal jury
Wednesday cleared 45 gun manufacturers and distributors of allegations
their
marketing practices have stoked violence in black and Hispanic
neighborhoods.

The jury deliberated for five days before reaching its verdict in the
closely
watched case that now goes to the judge for a final decision. The panel
was
unable to reach a verdict regarding 23 other defendants.

Chris Cox, chief lobbyist for the National Rifle Association, called the
ruling “common sense” and said the lawsuit was “aimed at bankrupting a
law-abiding American industry by holding them liable for the actions of
criminals.”

Kweisi Mfume, the president of the National Association for the
Advancement
of Colored People, said he was disappointed by the jury’s findings.

In an unusual ruling, U.S. District Judge Jack Weinstein decided ahead of
time the jury would play only an advisory role and that he will make the
final decision in the case. Both sides will submit written arguments
interpreting the jury’s verdict within 30 days.

The lawsuit claimed the firearms industry knew corrupt dealers were
supplying
products to criminals in minority communities and did nothing to stop it.

Rather than monetary damages, the NAACP sought to force distributors to
restrict sales to dealers with storefront outlets, prohibit sales to gun
show
dealers and limit individual purchasers to one handgun a month.

The defendants and the gun industry argued it was unfair and illegal to
hold
manufacturers liable for the criminal use of a legal product. They also
said
that legislatures – not courts – should set standards for sales.

“Nobody wants to have someone selling to criminals,” James Dorr,
attorney
for Sturm, Ruger & Co., said during closing arguments. “This industry
certainly doesn’t.”

The verdict followed more than five weeks of testimony in the suit against
68
defendants, including Smith & Wesson Corp., Glock Inc., Colt Manufacturing

and other major gun makers and distributors.

The plaintiffs built much of their case on previously sealed data -
provided
by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms under court order -
detailing
sales histories of weapons recovered at crime scenes in New York state
from
1996 to 2000.

An expert witness testified that an analysis found 11 percent of handguns
sold in 1996 were used in rapes, robberies, assaults and murders by 2000.

The defendants knew they were feeding a pool of illegal handguns and
“purposely turned their head away from the problem,” NAACP attorney
Elisa
Barnes told the jury. “They said, `It’s not our worry.”’

Defense experts claimed the analysis was flawed. They said their own
studies
found that most guns used by criminals come from a secondary market of
used
or stolen guns.

Since 1998, more than two dozen cities, counties and states have sued gun
makers, many claiming the manufacturers allowed weapons to reach criminals

because of irresponsible marketing. Many suits have been dismissed or
dropped, but Congress is considering legislation backed by the White House

and the NRA to protect gun makers and sellers from lawsuits arising from
the
criminal or unlawful use of their products.