Supreme Court: Sandy Hook families’ case against Remington can proceed

Nov. 12 (UPI) — Sandy Hook Elementary School families can’t take their case against gunmaker Remington Arms to the Supreme Court but they can proceed with their lawsuit.

The Supreme Court won’t take up the case but families can still pursue it, the court ruled. They rejected Remington’s argument that gunmakers are shielded from liability in crimes.

The 2012 shooting left 20 children and six adults dead in Sandy Hook, Conn. The families are suing Remington because they allege the marketing of the AR-15-style weapon inspired Adam Lanza to commit the mass murder at an elementary school. They claim the weapon was shown as “a highly lethal weapon designed for purposes that are illegal — namely, killing other human beings.”

The lawsuit claims Remington used product placement in violent video games.

Remington has argued that it’s protected under a 2005 law that shields gunmakers from liability for crimes committed with their products. The Supreme Court justices rejected that argument.

“The families are grateful that the Supreme Court upheld precedent and denied Remington’s latest attempt to avoid accountability,” lawyer for the plaintiffs Josh Koskoff said. “We are ready to resume discovery and proceed toward trial in order to shed light on Remington’s profit-driven strategy to expand the AR-15 market and court high-risk users at the expense of Americans’ safety.”

The lawsuit claims that Remington should never have sold a weapon that dangerous to the public. The gunman Adam Lanza took the weapon from his home, shot his mother and then went to the school. After committing the massacre he shot himself. His mother owned the rifle legally.

The Supreme Court’s decision Tuesday allows the decision by the Connecticut Supreme Court earlier this year to stand. That court wrote that family members are “entitled to have their opportunity to prove their wrongful marketing allegations.”

This opens the door for other victims of gun crimes to file lawsuits and is being watched by gun control advocates, gun rights supporters and manufacturers.