Political Quotes

“I do not think any industry should be given blanket immunity for its negligence, especially when it results in the deaths of innocent people. My amendment would allow the victims of gun violence to recover damages from the manufacturers or sellers of firearms where their negligence allows guns to fall into the hands of criminals. It would ensure that manufacturers, distributors, and retailers are held responsible for their negligence just as every other industry and every other individual may be held responsible. Now, without my amendment, the bill would essentially immunize manufacturers from lawsuits from victims of gun violence, and it would allow these victims to sue retailers only under exceedingly narrow circumstances. Even if my colleagues think strict liability or rather expansive legal theories should not be available in gun cases, should we not all be able to agree that a well-settled set of principles of negligence should apply to guns in the same way that they apply to virtually every other context under State common law? As reported by the Committee on the Judiciary, the bill would bar suits against manufacturers entirely, and it would limit claims against retailers to theories based on negligent entrustment or negligence per se.”