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Some good news out of Washington for a change!

dwarven1

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Congress OKs Gun Industry Lawsuit Shield

By LAURIE KELLMAN, Associated Press Writer 39 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - Congress gave the gun lobby its top legislative priority Thursday, passing a bill that would protect the firearms industry from massive lawsuits brought by crime victims. The White House says
President Bush will sign it into law.

The House voted 283-144 to send the bill to the president after supporters, led by the National Rifle Association, proclaimed it vital to protect the industry from being bankrupted by huge jury awards. Opponents, waging a tough battle against growing public support for the legislation, called it proof of the gun lobby's power over the Republican-controlled Congress.

"This legislation will make the unregulated gun industry the most pampered industry in America," said Kristen Rand, director of the Violence Policy Center.

Under the measure, about 20 pending lawsuits by local governments against the industry would be dismissed. The Senate passed the bill in July.

The bill's passage was the NRA's top legislative priority and would give Bush and his Republican allies on Capitol Hill a rare victory at a time when some top GOP leaders are under indictment or investigation.

"Lawsuits seeking to hold the firearms industry responsible for the criminal and unlawful use of its products are brazen attempts to accomplish through litigation what has not been achieved by legislation and the democratic process,"
House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., told his colleagues.

Propelled by GOP election gains and the incidents of lawlessness associated with the passing of Hurricane Katrina, support for the bill has grown since a similar measure passed the House last year and was killed in the Senate.

Horrific images of people without the protection of public safety in New Orleans made a particular impression on viewers who had never before felt unsafe, according to the gun lobby.

"Americans saw a complete collapse of the government's ability to protect them," said Wayne LaPierre, the NRA's executive vice president.

"That burnt in, those pictures of people standing there defending their lives and defending their property and their family," he added, "where the one source of comfort was a firearm."

With support from four new Republicans this session of Congress, the bill passed the Senate for the first time in July. House passage never was in doubt because it had 257 co-sponsors, far more than the 218 needed to pass.

The bill's authors say it still would allow civil suits against individual parties who have been found guilty of criminal wrongdoing by the courts.

Opponents say the strength of the bill's support is testament to the influence of the gun lobby. If the bill had been law when the relatives of six victims of convicted Washington-area snipers John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo sued the gun dealer from which they obtained their rifle, the dealer would not have agreed to pay the families and victims $2.5 million.

"It is shameful that Republicans in Congress are pushing legislation that guarantees their gun-dealing cronies receive special treatment and are above the law," said Rep. Robert Wexler (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif.

Bush has said he supports the bill, which would prohibit lawsuits against the firearms industry for damages resulting from the unlawful use of a firearm or ammunition. Gun makers and dealers still would be subject to product liability, negligence or breach of contract suits, the bill's authors say.

Democrats and Republicans alike court the NRA at election time, and the bill has garnered bipartisan support. But the firearms industry still gave 88 percent of its campaign contributions, or $1.2 million, to Republicans in the 2004 election cycle.

Gun control advocates, meanwhile, gave 98 percent of their contributions, or $93,700, to Democrats that cycle, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

___

The bill is S. 397.
 
Proof the the VPC has no idea what it's talking about:
"This legislation will make the unregulated gun industry the most pampered industry in America," said Kristen Rand, director of the Violence Policy Center.
Unregulated? G-d, is there a MORE regulated industry in the US? What about the BATFE? They hold almost infinite power over the gun industry!

Another interesting quote:
If the bill had been law when the relatives of six victims of convicted Washington-area snipers John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo sued the gun dealer from which they obtained their rifle, the dealer would not have agreed to pay the families and victims $2.5 million.
I don't understand how that can be, because
Gun makers and dealers still would be subject to product liability, negligence or breach of contract suits.
Wasn't it negligence that allowed Malvo and Muhammad to get that gun in the first place? IIRC, there was no paper trail on that and Muhammad wasn't legally allowed to own a gun. I don't remember exactly how they got the gun, but from what I remember, I'd think that the dealer could have been sued for negligence.
 
dwarven1 said:
Opponents say the strength of the bill's support is testament to the influence of the gun lobby. If the bill had been law when the relatives of six victims of convicted Washington-area snipers John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo sued the gun dealer from which they obtained their rifle, the dealer would not have agreed to pay the families and victims $2.5 million.

"It is shameful that Republicans in Congress are pushing legislation that guarantees their gun-dealing cronies receive special treatment and are above the law," said Rep. Robert Wexler (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif.

I didn't know being a family member of a victim of a violent crime was the same a winning the lottery. We might as well go after FORD, GM, HONDA, TOYOTA, etc every time someone creates an accident with a automobile. [roll]

Like I've always said, "Democrats never think logically, they think emotionally."
 
dwarven1 said:
Another interesting quote:
If the bill had been law when the relatives of six victims of convicted Washington-area snipers John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo sued the gun dealer from which they obtained their rifle, the dealer would not have agreed to pay the families and victims $2.5 million.
I don't understand how that can be, because
Gun makers and dealers still would be subject to product liability, negligence or breach of contract suits.
Wasn't it negligence that allowed Malvo and Muhammad to get that gun in the first place? IIRC, there was no paper trail on that and Muhammad wasn't legally allowed to own a gun. I don't remember exactly how they got the gun, but from what I remember, I'd think that the dealer could have been sued for negligence.

I believe the plaintiffs got the bulk of their settlement from Bushmaster, not the dealer. Bushmaster would be (and should be) off the hook under this new law.
 
derek said:
I didn't know being a family member of a victim of a violent crime was the same a winning the lottery. We might as well go after FORD, GM, HONDA, TOYOTA, etc every time someone creates an accident with a automobile.

That type of crap has had me going about this the whole time.

Some people are just stuck on stupid.

And I'm going to sue the New Balance when I've been drinking and trip on the sidewalk up to my house and konk my head.
 
C-pher said:
And I'm going to sue the New Balance when I've been drinking and trip on the sidewalk up to my house and konk my head.

You're going to sue New Balance because you lost your balance? [roll] [roll]
 
Ross, what I remember is that gun store is also out of business. I might have to ask around. Still have family in those parts.
 
Here it is, folks, an official statement from the geniuses at the Brady Bunch. Were these people born this way, or did they require some sort of special training?

Violence Policy Center (VPC) Statement on U.S. House Passage of Bill Protecting the Unregulated Gun Industry

Legislation Makes Gun Industry the Most Pampered Industry in America

WASHINGTON, DC–Following today's passage of legislation (S. 397) shielding the gun industry from certain types of civil liability, Violence Policy Center Legislative Director Kristen Rand released the following statement:

This bill is built on a corrupt foundation of lies that will leave a legacy of pain and suffering. Proponents lie when they claim the gun industry is the most heavily regulated industry in America when, in fact, they are one of only two industries–the other being the tobacco industry–exempt from federal health and safety regulation. Now the unregulated gun industry will also enjoy protection from legitimate lawsuits by individuals–like victims of the Washington, DC-area snipers–injured by the reckless and negligent actions of gun manufacturers and dealers. This legislation will make the unregulated gun industry the most pampered industry in America.

The bill was not as bad as the gun lobby wanted it to be, however. The bill passed by the House last Congress did not contain the gun control measures included in S. 397: a requirement that gun dealers provide a child safety lock when they sell a handgun; and, a provision requiring a study that may ultimately lead to a strengthening and expansion of the federal ban on armor-piercing ammunition.

JT
 
Behind every silver lining is another cloud

What's being forgotten in the joy of finally getting this protection in place is the fact that we got lied to ans screwed by our alleged friends in the process.

The House version of the protection bill never included the Senate amendments requiring f*ing gun lock sales with every gun and the redundant ammo ban. A lot of people had strongly opposed those provisions and been very vocal about it towards the House leadership. Last week, the leadership told them that other priorities would keep them from getting around to the bill this session, so they could call off the dogs and go back to sleep. Naturally, most people fell for it, and the swithboards quieted down. No sooner than this happend, the leadership dumped their own version of the bill and put the Senate version on the warp speed track for a vote. Since it was the identical version, there was no need to deal with any differences (i.e., the objectionable amentments) in conference committee.

Only the people you trust can stick the knife in your back.

Ken
 
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