Vintage Firearms Lawsuit Part 1

 Vintage Firearms Lawsuit (Part 1)

PLCAA and Nuisance

Vintage Firearms of Endicott, NY is a retailer of firearms and is being sued in several lawsuits related to a mass murder.  This is a good example of the strategy of the gun-grabbing Left, but is quite involved so SCOPE is presenting it in two parts on two successive days.

First, some general legal background.

What if you were walking down the street and were subjected to a drive by shooting; someone in a Ford drove by and shot at you with a Glock.  Would anyone expect to sue Ford because their car was used in a crime?  But the Left expects, under those same circumstances, to sue Glock.

How is a lawsuit possible under the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) which was signed on October 26, 2005 and became Public Law 109–92? 

PLCAA protects, firearms manufacturers and dealers from being held liable, in most instances, when crimes have been committed with their products.  This is the law that Joe Biden constantly lies about by saying gun manufacturers can’t be sued.  Under this law, both arms manufacturers and dealers can still be held liable for damages resulting from defective products, breach of contract, criminal misconduct, and other actions for which they are directly responsible; this is the same basis as almost every other product. 

However, there are some loopholes that the gun-grabbing Left jumps through.

Under PLCAA, firearms manufacturers and dealers may be held liable for ‘negligent entrustment.’  Negligent entrustment means: “the supplying of a qualified product by a seller for use by another person when the seller knows, or reasonably should know, the person to whom the product is supplied is likely to, and does, use the product in a manner involving unreasonable risk of physical injury to the person or others.”

PLCAA also does not protect when: “a manufacturer or seller of a qualified product knowingly violated a State or Federal statute applicable to the sale or marketing of the product, and the violation was a proximate cause of the harm for which relief is sought.”  

As usual, the Democrats in the NY State government don’t believe the laws apply to them.  In order to circumvent PLCAA, NY laws passed in 2021: bills S7196 and A6762B.  

Direct quotes from the bills:

§ 898-B. PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES.

1.NO GUN INDUSTRY MEMBER, BY CONDUCT EITHER UNLAWFUL IN ITSELF OR UNREASONABLE UNDER ALL THE CIRCUMSTANCES SHALL KNOWINGLY OR RECKLESSLY CREATE, MAINTAIN OR CONTRIBUTE TO A CONDITION IN NEW YORK STATE THAT ENDANGERS THE SAFETY OR HEALTH OF THE PUBLIC THROUGH THE SALE, MANUFACTURING, IMPORTING OR MARKETING OF A QUALIFIED PRODUCT.

2.ALL GUN INDUSTRY MEMBERS WHO MANUFACTURE, MARKET, IMPORT OR OFFER FOR WHOLESALE OR RETAIL SALE ANY QUALIFIED PRODUCT IN NEW YORK STATE SHALL ESTABLISH AND UTILIZE REASONABLE CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES TO PREVENT ITS QUALIFIED PRODUCTS FROM BEING POSSESSED, USED, MARKETED OR SOLD UNLAWFULLY IN NEW YORK STATE.

§ 898-C. PUBLIC NUISANCE.

1.A VIOLATION OF SUBDIVISION ONE OR TWO OF SECTION EIGHT HUNDRED NINETY-EIGHT-B OF THIS ARTICLE THAT RESULTS IN HARM TO THE PUBLIC SHALL HEREBY BE DECLARED TO BE A PUBLIC NUISANCE.

2.THE EXISTENCE OF A PUBLIC NUISANCE SHALL NOT DEPEND ON WHETHER THE GUN INDUSTRY MEMBER ACTED FOR THE PURPOSE OF CAUSING HARM TO THE PUBLIC.

In trying to justify this, the race card was also used in these bills; apparently, the firearm, itself, is prejudiced against minorities.  According to the bills:

This nuisance poses specific harm to New Yorkers based largely on their zip code and certain immutable characteristics such as race and ethnicity.  Illegal firearm violence has disproportionately affected underserved black and brown neighborhoods in our cities and throughout the state despite stringent state and local laws against the illegal possession of firearms.

These laws are (intentionally) vague enough to drive a tank through.  The Left will claim that any “controls and procedures” were not reasonable (by their definition.) 

Perhaps the ‘stringent’ laws which keep blacks in certain ‘zip codes’ from owning guns and practicing self-defense are a root cause and it’s not the firearm itself? 

Are blacks ‘underserved’ by the lack of gun stores available to sell them firearms with which they can practice self-defense? New York State is not alone in this effort to take away your guns by any means.

Ammoland wrote about another state’s efforts to disarm law abiding citizens.

The city of Chicago filed suit against Glock for the third-party criminal misuse of its products, even though Glock is not directly responsible for the actions of criminals. Chicago is seeking to hold Glock liable when criminals use illegal devices (auto sears or so-called “Glock switches”) to illegally modify Glock pistols into illegal machine guns.  Chicago is using a “public nuisance” theory. A Chicago Tribune editorial said the lawsuit “represents an abuse of the tort liability system.”

In addition, devices that are designed to convert semi-automatic firearms to fire automatically are already illegal throughout the U.S under Federal law, 26 USC § 5845(b), which defines these devices as a “machinegun.”

Ammoland continues:

U.S. tort law has long held that a person or entity cannot be held responsible for a third party’s criminal acts.  Simply put: people are not responsible for the behavior of others. Therefore, if a violent criminal acquires and misuses a firearm to commit a crime, it is the criminal who is liable for the conduct, not the company that produced the firearm. Just like how Chevrolet isn’t responsible for the actions of drunk drivers.

In 2004, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled against Chicago and its public nuisance theory. Pointing to well-established tort law, the opinion noted: the claimed harm is the aggregate result of numerous unforeseeable intervening criminal acts by third parties not under defendants’ control…the manufacturer and distributor defendants…are even further removed from the intervening criminal acts.

Chicago lost, but the city imposed tremendous costs on the defendants. An NRA official explained at the time, “These cases aren’t designed to win… It’s a sinister abuse of the legal system aimed at bankrupting a lawful industry.”

Such abuses led to the enactment of the PLCAA in 2005 which merely codified the standard tort principle.  Despite the PLCAA’s clear mandate, anti-gun politicians and their tort attorney allies continue to concoct unconstitutional legal theories in an attempt to get around the law.  Especially in deep blue states like New York where, in 2021, a nuisance law was passed about firearms.

(Continued Tomorrow)

Vintage Firearms Lawsuit (Part 2)

   

Vintage Firearms Lawsuit (Part 2) Yesterday, SCOPE gave you the legal background to the lawsuit we are discussing, today. This e mail is about an effort to drive a small gun store into bankruptcy through unsubstantiated lawsuits. An NRA official said about similar lawsuits, “These cases aren’t designed to win… It’s a sinister abuse of the legal system aimed at bankrupting a lawful industry.” If they can drive gun stores out of business in New York State, they remove access to guns and ammo.  This lawsuit is supported by the usual anti-gun suspects:  Everytown (Bloomberg), Giffords, Brady United.  On May 14, 2022, at a Tops Friendly Markets supermarket in Buffalo, ten people were murdered and three were injured.     The murderer, Payton S. Gendron, a white male, was 18 years old at the time of the shooting.  He had traveled three and a half hours to the Tops supermarket from his hometown of Conklin, New York. On November 28, 2022, Gendron pled guilty to all state charges in the shooting, including murder, domestic terrorism, and hate crimes. On February 15, 2023, Gendron was sentenced to 11 consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole. There seems to be no question that this was a ‘hate crime’ based on writings of Gendron. The Bushmaster XM-15* that was used in the shooting was purchased from Vintage Firearms in Endicott, NY.  Currently, there are six lawsuits filed against Vintage Firearms owner Robert Donald by: the City of Buffalo; the City of Rochester; relatives of the victim; bystanders at the shooting.  All lawsuits attempt to skirt the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) and use New York State’s Nuisance laws passed in 2021.  (See yesterday’s email for deeper discussion on those laws.) There is no question that Gendron passed the NICS background check after filling in Form 4473 at Vintage Firearms.  Gendron had also cleared another NICS check while purchasing a shotgun (not used in the murders) at a store in the neighboring town of Great Bend, Pennsylvania.  Two passed NICS checks would seem to prove that the seller had no reason to question the legality of the sale.  In addition, an ATF inspection of Vintage Firearms after the shooting found no issues. The lawsuits contend that Vintage Hardware’s owner should have seen that something was wrong with Gendron and stopped the sale.  But there is not a single factor that indicates that the owner would have known something was wrong with Gendron; for instance, he was not in any rush when buying the rifle. Gendron did nothing to arouse suspicion and the seller did not remember Gendron until later shown his picture. There are no accusations in the lawsuits that Vintage Hardware’s owner shared any of Gendron’s racial animosity that made it a ‘hate crime.’  In addition, the owner of a local pawn shop frequented by Gendron is an Irani immigrant who did not see any racist signs in Gendron. So, the lawsuits throw a “Hail Mary.” Since New York prohibits the purchase and/or possession of ammunition magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds of ammunition, Gendron traveled to Pennsylvania to purchase a 30-round ammunition magazine.  In his on-line diary, Gendron posted photos of modifications he made to his rifle so that it could be equipped with the 30-round magazine, while acknowledging that this was illegal in New York. The lawsuits claim that a Vintage Firearms employee instructed him as to how to replace the fixed magazine with the 30 rounds magazine.  Vintage Hardware’s owner told SCOPE he does not have any employees and, in fact, he did not know how to make this change until shown how, after the shooting!  The change involves drilling out a part and the plaintiffs claim this made the magazine removeable.  (This is important!  If the lawsuits are successful, they will have redefined every semi-automatic rifle with a fixed magazine as an Assault Rifle, as there would be no fixed magazines; every magazine would be removeable by drilling it out.) How are these suits possible since the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) protects firearms manufacturers and dealers from being held liable when crimes have been committed with their products. This is the law that Joe Biden constantly lies about by saying gun manufacturers can’t be sued.  Under this law, both arms manufacturers and dealers can still be held liable for damages resulting from defective products, breach of contract, criminal misconduct, and other actions for which they are directly responsible; this is the same basis as almost every other product.  (This is not an issue in these lawsuits.)    Manufacturers and dealers may also be held liable for negligent entrustment if it is found that they had reason to believe a firearm was intended for use in a crime. (There is no evidence that Vintage Firearms had an inkling of what Gendron intended to do.) There is another loophole in PLCAA and this is the one that the plaintiffs are using.  PLCAA does not shield the manufacturer or retailer when: “a manufacturer or seller of a qualified product knowingly violated a State or Federal statute applicable to the sale or marketing of the product, and the violation was a proximate cause of the harm for which relief is sought.”  Under NY laws passed in 2021, (bills S7196 and A6762B), they classify firearms as a public nuisance to circumvent PLCAA.  Even though they are probably unconstitutional, the laws are still on the books.  Therefore, the plaintiffs say NY’s laws were violated and PLCAA does not apply. Vintage Firearms is under attack.  But it isn’t about just this one gun store.  The gun grabbers in NY State are sending a message to all gun stores; we’re coming after you.  Open a gun store in NY State and you open yourself up to bankruptcy as the left will drag you through court and even if the gun store wins, the cost of defending themselves is so great that they lose.  In proof of this, Gendron purchased some of the parts he used from a major gun retailer which would have had the money to defend itself.  The lawsuits omit that store and go for a one-man operation in hoping it can’t afford to defend itself. These anti-2A organizations like Everytown (Bloomberg), Giffords and Brady United are vicious and no-holds-barred in pursuit of neutering the 2nd Amendment.  Get in their way and they will punish you! These lawsuits are great example of how anti-2A organizations with deep liberal pockets are a direct threat to our constitutional rights, by using the court system.  If you would like to help, make check to the owner, Robert Donald and send it to: Robert Donald PO Box 5567 Endicott, NY 13763 Please note that you are a SCOPE member Or send the check to SCOPE and note that it is for Vintage Firearms; 100% will be quickly forwarded. SCOPE PO Box 165 East Aurora, NY   14052        * Bushmaster XM-15 Rifles | Palmetto State Armory

DONATE HERE   *** If you wish to donate on-line *** Please make sure you write Vintage Firearms in the comment section

America's Weaknesses Against the East & Leftist

 

April 15, 2024

[Note from Peter: This historical parallel from the Roman Empire is the perfect analogy to the situation today-- the US appears far weaker than it was even just a few years ago. And that has some pretty substantial implications for the future.]

When the barbarian king Rugila died in the year 434 AD, Roman Emperor Theodosius II likely rejoiced that his mortal enemy was no more.

Rugila (and his father Uldin) had been invading and terrorizing Roman territory for decades; but the Empire was so weak at that point that Theodosius was powerless to stop them.

By the early 400s, Rome was an almost unrecognizable shell of its former greatness. Nearly two centuries of civil war, plague, inflation, invasion, and economic malaise had sapped the empire of its strength and reputation... and foreign kingdoms didn’t hesitate to take advantage.

In the early 420s, Theodosius finally resorted to paying off King Rugila, essentially bribing him with an offer of 350 pounds of gold ANNUALLY.

Rugila took the money… probably bewildered at how easily he was able to bend the supposedly powerful Roman Empire to his will.

Theodosius subserviently made the payments year after year, and managed to pretend that the deal was a win for Rome.

The Emperor acted as if he was still powerful and in charge of the situation. He even tried to convince his subjects that the annual tribute was payment for some bogus service that the barbarians were supposedly providing, rather than the ransom money it really was.

And that’s why King Rugila’s death was probably such welcome news to the Emperor. Finally, the menace was gone.

But unfortunately for Theodosius, Rugila’s successor would prove to be a far greater threat.

His name was Attila, known to history of course as Attila the Hun. And he wasted no time picking up where his father and grandfather left off: capitalizing on the Roman leadership’s weakness and cowardice.

Attila’s first order of business was to renegotiate the peace deal and make even more demands of the Roman Empire. Theodosius caved almost immediately.

It became known as the Treaty of Margus; Attila walked away with DOUBLE the annual tribute (an increase from 350 to 700 pounds of gold). Plus, he forced the Emperor to eliminate trade sanctions against the Huns and open up Rome’s vast markets to Hun merchants.

Lastly, Attila negotiated a prisoner swap, receiving some very high value Hun nobles who had taken refuge in the Roman Empire. In exchange, Theodosius received a few low-level soldiers… and the Emperor had to pay an additional ransom for each one of them.

Like his father Rugila, Attila was probably astonished that the ruler of the supposedly most powerful empire in the world had no backbone, no confidence, no will to stand and fight.

So naturally Attila’s demands did not end with the Treaty of Margus. He knew an obvious advantage when he saw one, and he continued to exploit Roman weakness until the end of his life.

Despite promises of peace, for example, Attila constantly found new excuses to set aside the treaty and make incursions into Roman territory.

He crossed the Danube and laid waste to Rome’s provinces in the Balkans, forcing Theodosius to renegotiate the peace treaty once again. This time the annual tribute was tripled to 2,100 pounds of gold.

A few years later, Attila demanded to marry the sister of Valentinian, the ruler of the western portion of the Roman Empire. Valentinian refused the proposal (as well as Attila’s demand for half of the western lands), so Attila invaded Italy, plundering and pillaging along the way.

Attila finally died in 453 AD before he had the chance to completely destroy the empire. But other barbarian kings also saw the ineptitude and weakness of Roman leadership, and they followed in Attila’s footsteps.

That’s the thing about cowardice and weakness: adversaries tend to notice and take advantage. It’s no different today.

Iran, Russia, and China have all paid close attention to the weakness and cowardice of the Biden administration. They see the social and financial decay of the United States. The political instability. The woke priorities of the Defense Department. And they can barely believe their eyes.

They know that the guy with five decades of experience has no backbone… that he’s a corrupt, brainless stooge who bends to the most radical wing of his party. He stands for nothing, abandons his allies, and gives away the farm for absolutely nothing in return.

He traded away the most valuable Russian prisoner in US custody for a WNBA player. He freed up potentially tens of billions of dollars for Iran in exchange for little more than a phony promise that they won’t develop nuclear weapons. (But it seems the Ayatollah pinky swore, so it’s all good.)

He allows invasions and incursions of US territory… and not only does nothing but sues state governments to prevent them from securing the border.

He tries to prevent allies from defending themselves. He pathetically attempts to use the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to boost his sagging approval rating. And he caves anytime a belligerent nation threatens violence.

These are all signs of obvious weakness that adversaries are all too happy to exploit. Iran is just the most recent example.

After this weekend’s attack against Israel, Iran specifically warned the US against responding. Biden immediately wilted. It’s pretty clear who wears the pants in the relationship.

And just like the case of Attila, it never ends. Any treaty that is signed, any agreement that is reached, is simply a lie. They’ll never keep their word, and they’ll continue milking the obvious cowardice that is on display for the world to see.

Now, this story of weakness isn’t just about Joe Biden. Congress is also weak and ineffective. Many courts and judges now ignore the rule of law and are simply activists in robes. The military is suffering a very public recruiting crisis, along with outdated weapons systems and critically low mission readiness.

It goes beyond government too. Big Media is a left-wing propaganda machine. Premier universities cultivate radicalism. Even Boeing can’t seem to build a quality aircraft anymore.

Optics matter, and the end result is undeniable: America appears far, far weaker from even just a few years ago. And adversaries have no intention of letting up.

To your freedom,

James Hickman

Co-Founder, Schiff Sovereign LLC

Neither this email, nor any content provided by our organization, is intended to provide personal tax or financial advice. This information is intended to be used and must be used for information purposes only, as general guidance and aimed at expanding your thinking. We are not investment or tax advisors, and this should not be considered advice. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment or employing any tax strategy. You should consider your own personal circumstances and speak with professional advisors, and independently research any information that you wish to rely upon, whether for the purpose of making an investment or tax decision, or otherwise. No content on the site or in this email constitutes - or should be understood as constituting - a recommendation to enter in any securities transactions or to engage in any of the investment strategies presented here, nor an offer of securities.

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SOLD Russell Green River Knife Works Matched Pair-Russell Hunter & Dadly

 300$ for the pair

ALL sales AS IS

WYSIWYG
Consignment sale

Two knives in excellent condition
Boxes have seen better days

J.RUSSELL CO
4064
GREEN RIVER WORKS
1834-1976
Both numbered the same
Dadly
&
Russell Hunter
 Payment money order or Bank check
Shipping included in auction total

Thanks for looking
#BPBReloading FFL
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Defying SCOTUS

 

Defying SCOTUS

Last Wednesday, February 7th, SCOPE sent an email titled Chevron Dying. It raised an important question about courts, legislatures and executives that defy United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) rulings and get away with it. Specifically, we asked:

When judges, legislators and executives openly defy the Constitution, that also opens the door to abuse and some action needs to be taken.  Without threat of punishment, there is little downside to ignoring SCOTUS and the Constitution.

We have a problem that needs to be addresses. With all the legal brainpower in Washington, there must be some possible solution? Of course, there has to be the will to solve the problem. 

Yesterday, Ammoland contained an article titled, 'Is the U.S. Supreme Court Losing Control Over Lower Courts', which is a reprint from “Arbalist Quarrel.” The article raised the same issue that SCOPE did a week earlier about lower courts openly defying SCOTUS. However, this article went beyond SCOPE in that it gave multiple examples of states defying SCOTUS.

And it raised the same unanswered question: what can we do about it? It’s not only a NY problem but it’s a bigger problem than you might have imagined.

It is worth reading to see the volume and types of cases where SCOTUS is openly defied.

Is The U.S. Supreme Court Losing Control Over The Lower Courts

(ammoland.com)

S.C.O.P.E. Shooters Committee On Political Education

https://scopeny2a.org/

Remington 12 ga 20" Barrels used for Cowboy Action Shooting

 

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