Should U.S. gun manufacturers who flood weapons dealers in border states with the guns that drive cartel violence in Mexico be held liable in court?
The Supreme Court heard arguments last week about whether a case brought by the Mexican government can go to trial. The gun industry is armed with a congressionally-tailored shield against liability for its deadly products. But the novel Mexican lawsuit seeks to bypass a 2005 law known as the Protection of Legal Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) by arguing that U.S. gunmakers negligently distribute arms to fly-by-night gun shops that are known to arm the Mexican drug cartels.
The case has reached the high court without ever going to trial. It was dismissed initially at the circuit level where a federal judge ruled that PLCCA forestalled the lawsuit. A federal appeals court reversed that ruling, however, finding the merits of the…
