Gun makers lose problem to New York law allowing lawsuits in opposition to business

Weapons confiscated at New York City public colleges are displayed at a information convention with Mayor Eric Adams at police headquarters to talk about weapons in public schools in New York Metropolis on May 25, 2022 in New York City.

Spencer Platt | Getty Pictures

A federal choose on Wednesday threw out a lawsuit by a group of gun producers, distributors and retailers challenging the constitutionality of a New York regulation that permits the state and people affected by gun violence to sue the business.

U.S. District Judge Mae D'Agostino in Albany rejected a request by the Nationwide Taking pictures Sports Basis and gun manufacturers, together with Smith & Wesson and Sturm, Ruger & Co, to enjoin enforcement of the statute.

The ruling came a day after a gunman killed 19 kids and two adults at a Texas elementary college, the newest in a spate of mass shootings, prompting renewed calls by Democrats for harder gun regulations.

The Nationwide Shooting Sports activities Foundation, a trade group for the firearms industry, didn't instantly respond to a request for remark.

Democratic former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo final July signed into regulation a measure that seeks to overcome authorized hurdles that have largely shielded the industry from lawsuits related to gun violence.

The regulation permits firearm sellers, manufacturers and distributors to be sued by the state, cities or people for making a "public nuisance" that endangers the general public's safety and well being.

The gun trade group argued the regulation wrongly imposes legal responsibility on firms working anywhere in the country that make, promote or market guns or ammunition which might be misused by criminals in New York.