Federal Judge Rules in Favor of Delaware Law Allowing Gun Dealers to Be Sued for Their Firearms Used in Shootings

By: José Niño

In a recent ruling, United States District Judge Richard G. Andrews threw out a legal challenge to a Delaware law that grants individuals the power to sue gun vendors for selling firearms used in shootings.

The plaintiff in this case, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), sought to scrap the law, which Delaware Governor John Carney signed into law in 2022. The law removed the legal immunity that gun manufacturers and dealers enjoyed that prevented them from being subjected to lawsuits in state courts for negligence.

Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings celebrated the ruling and described NSSF’s lawsuit as “another right-wing challenge to a commonsense gun safety law.”

“The gun lobby claims to speak for gun owners, but at day’s end its masters have always been corporate and its priority is protecting profits, full stop,” Jennings declared in a statement. “It is a massive giveaway to a special interest that gives the people of this state nothing in return.”

In passing this law in 2022, Delaware became the first state in the nation to pass legislation that removes the gun liability shield. This law mandates gun sellers to implement “reasonable controls” to stop sales to “straw” purchasers by convicted felons, gun traffickers, and other individuals barred from firearm possession from obtaining one.

Dudley Brown, the president of the National Association for Gun Rights, offered his take on the federal judge’s ruling:

“Delaware’s gun control laws are outrageous and getting worse all the time. The District Judge should be upholding the Constitution instead of bowing to the gun control zealots.”

In theory, the Protection of Lawful Commerce of Arms Act (PLCAA) that was passed by the US Congress in 2005 protects gun stores from legal action related to criminals using firearms acquired from the shops.

However, many blue states don’t care about the rule of law any longer. In fact, they’re constantly trying to push the envelope by passing unconstitutional measures that infringe on the right to bear arms. These people are relentless, and they won’t stop until they have completely eviscerated our sacred freedoms.

In the case of Delaware, there are very few avenues for gun owners to roll back gun control measures. After all, Delaware is ranked in a terrible 42^nd place according to Guns & Ammo magazine’s “Best States for Gun Owners” rankings. It’s a de facto one-party state with Democrats completely dominating its political scene.

As a result, gun owners in blue states will have to turn to the courts to see any form of reforms materialize. Such processes will be long and drawn-out, but they’re necessary steps that must be taken if we want to roll back the gun controllers’ agenda.

José Niño is a freelance writer based in Austin, Texas. Contact him via Facebook, Twitter, or email him at [email protected]. Get his e-book, The 10 Myths of Gun Control, here.