(New York) A New York State law holding potentially responsible weapons manufacturers when their weapons are used in fatal shootings was validated Thursday by a federal court of appeal.
The decision rendered by the United States Court of Appeal for the second circuit in Manhattan validated the decision of an Albany judge.
A committee of three judges ruled that the New York State law of 2021 was neither unconstitutional nor vague. The opinion written by judge Eunice C. Lee declared that a legal action aimed at preventing the application of the law has not demonstrated that the law was “incapable in all its applications”.
The law obliges the firearms industry to set up reasonable controls to prevent the illegal possession, use, marketing or sale of its products in New York. It makes it possible to continue the industry for illegal acts creating or contributing to threats to public health or security.
The National Sports Sports Foundation, a professional association of firearms manufacturers who ships firearms in New York, had brought legal action against this law, affirming that it was preempted by the 2005 federal law on the protection of legal arms trade, which prohibits disputes likely to destroy the firearms industry.
In May 2022, judge Mae A. d’Agostino rejected the complaint, refusing the arguments that the law label did not correctly explain what was prohibited. She declared that the law closely followed the wording of the New York State General Act on public nuisances, which has been “a good law since 1965”.
Lawyers for weapons manufacturers did not respond to requests for comments immediately.
Eric Tirschwell, executive director of the non -profit association Everytown Law, praised the decision. He stressed that the law creates “a new path for the victims and their families in order to hold the malicious actors in the firearms industry responsible for their role in the epidemic of armed violence which ravages the communities of the State Empire (New York)”.
Everytown Law and the Giffords Law Center to take Gun Violence was among the protection groups against armed violence having filed a memory of Amicus Curiae in this case, arguing that the new law “simply does not create the general fray” predicted by arms manufacturers.
Judge Dennis Jacobs subscribed to the decision, despite some reservations. He wrote that New York State “developed a general law on public nuisances, which applies only to” members of the arms industry “and is applicable by a multitude of public and private actors”.
And he added: “The intention of the congress, when it closes a door, is not that the states thus force a window. »»
Judge Jacobs, quoting a recent decision of the Supreme Court, said that he shared the opinion of the two other judges of the committee according to which the law could be applied in accordance with the Federal Act and the American Constitution.
But he also argued that New York Firearms was “nothing less than an attempt to bypass” the federal law, stressing that the governor of the time, Andrew Cuomo declared, when he signed, that this law “would repair wrongs” caused by federal law.
“This law has a legitimate scope, which allows us to confirm the rejection of this challenge. We will have to wait for the next cases to determine to what extent this scope is limited, “said judge Jacobs.
