Bill Blocks Gun Suit by New Orleans
Louisiana lawmakers have thwarted New Orleans’ first-in-the nation lawsuit that claims gun manufacturers should be held liable for the costs of gun-related violence.
A bill preventing Louisiana cities from suing the gun industry breezed through the state Senate without a dissenting vote Wednesday night. It had already passed the House, and Gov. Mike Foster said Thursday that he will sign it.
The bill has a retroactive clause nullifying the suit filed last fall by New Orleans Mayor Marc Morial, who claimed that gun makers should be held responsible for a product lacking adequate safety devices. The case was followed by several suits, including one filed by Los Angeles, charging that gun makers violate public nuisance and unfair business practice laws.
Morial said New Orleans will challenge the law in court.
John Church, associate professor at the Louisiana State University Law Center, said the major legal question is whether the bill can be applied to a suit already filed.
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