Jack Reed: “the legislation before us can't be all things. It can't be an effective barrier against litigation to protect the gun…”

“the legislation before us can't be all things. It can't be an effective barrier against litigation to protect the gun industry and yet a way to protect the legitimate rights of citizens who have been harmed by guns. In fact, it is not both; it is one of them. It is carefully, cleverly worded legislation to immunize the gun industry--dealers, manufacturers, and the National Rifle Association--from any type of liability with respect to guns, virtually. There are perhaps minor exceptions, but the cases we see before us today--the case of the DC snipers, the case of two police officers in New Jersey--would be barred. These cases have already been filed. In fact, one of the sweeping aspects of this legislation is, it doesn't attempt to set the rules prospectively, to say as we go forward these cases would not be heard by the courts. It literally walks in and tells people who have filed cases, cases that have survived summary judgment motions already by State court judges: You are out of court. This is sweeping, and it is unprecedented. It deals a serious blow to citizens throughout this country while enhancing dramatically the legal protections for the gun industry. Consistently the proponents say: You can't hold someone responsible for the criminal actions of another. That is not what these cases are about.…”