Mexico’s Lawsuit Against Gun Manufacturers Tossed Out By US Judge

After a devastating loss where a U.S. court threw out a $10 billion case from Mexico against American gun manufacturers, the Mexican Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that they will be pursuing a new line of legal action against the manufacturers.

Mexican Foreign Affairs Secretary Marcelo Ebrard announced on Wednesday that they will be putting forward a new lawsuit to the U.S. courts regarding the companies that it believes are responsible for the illegal gun trade in Mexico, the AP News reported.

The new suit will target gun shops or dealers who they believe engage in “straw” purchasing, people who buy the guns who sell it to smugglers who in turn sell it allegedly to the crime organizations in Mexico. Straw purchasing is a crime punishable by 15 to 25 years in prison if the guns are involved in drug trafficking.

“Mexico is going to file the second lawsuit in Arizona, and we are going to show that many of these outlets where they sell these products in these counties I mentioned, are dealing with straw purchasers, and criminal charges have to be brought,” Ebrard said.

The original lawsuit targeted major U.S. gun manufacturers like Smith-Wesson, Barrett Firearms, and Colt for their alleged negligence in selling firearms to crime organizations in the country. The lawsuit sought at least $10 billion in damages from the companies.

It was thrown out by the Massachusetts U.S. District Chief Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV due to protections granted to the industry by the U.S. Constitution, according to Border Report.

“Unfortunately for the government of Mexico, all of its claims are either barred by federal law or fail for other reasons. The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act unequivocally bars lawsuits seeking to hold gun manufacturers responsible for the acts of individuals using guns for their intended purpose. And, while the statute contains several narrow exceptions, none are applicable here,” Saylor said in a statement.

“This court does not have the authority to ignore an act of Congress, nor is its proper role to devise stratagems to avoid (statutes),” he clarified in his ruling. “And while the court has considerable sympathy for the people of Mexico – and none whatsoever for those who traffic guns to Mexican criminal organizations – it is duty-bound to follow the law.”

Mexico, which only has a single gun factory run by its army and few gun permits allowed, experiences deadly amounts of gun violence on a daily basis. Over 17,000 homicides in 2019 alone were linked to smuggled weapons in the country.