The State of New York is attempting to circumvent the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) with a so-called “public nuisance” law — but in truth, it is only a nuisance to the firearms industry.
The PLCAA is a common-sense federal law that shields firearm manufacturers, distributors, and dealers from liability if their products are used in the commission of a crime. Under New York’s nuisance statute, the state can sue a firearm manufacturer, dealer, or distributor as a “public nuisance” if the gun was used to commit a crime.
After the Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that New York’s nuisance statute complied with the PLCAA, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the firearm industry’s trade association, petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review the case.
“We earnestly believe that New York’s punitive public nuisance law is exactly what Congress had in mind when it passed the PLCAA with a bipartisan majority,” said Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel. “The PLCAA is designed to prohibit frivolous lawsuits against members of the firearm industry based on the criminal actions of remote third parties, and we continue to believe the New York statute is intended to evade the will of Congress.”
“The PLCAA codifies bedrock tort law,” Keane added. “It protects common-sense principles to prevent baseless litigation from bankrupting an entire industry — especially one that provides the necessary means for the lawful exercise of the Second Amendment.”
On Monday, the National Rifle Association (NRA), together with the Second Amendment Foundation and other groups filed an amicus curiae brief urging the high court to grant review in National Shooting Sports Foundation, Inc. v. Letitia James. The NRA stated: “Our brief argues that the Second Circuit’s decision undermines Congress’s judgment in enacting PLCAA by allowing precisely the type of coordinated, abusive litigation the statute was enacted to address and prevent.”
The Second Amendment Foundation observed that attempts to put gunmakers out of business have a history older than the United States. “British efforts to suppress arms commerce in the years before the Revolutionary War were correctly understood by the Founders as a deliberate attempt to disarm and enslave the American people,” said Kostas Moros, SAF Director of Legal Research and Education. “Congress enacted the PLCAA to stop the modern equivalent — coordinated litigation campaigns designed to bankrupt the firearms industry through meritless lawsuits.”
“New York’s law invites precisely the kind of abusive end-run around federal protections that Congress sought to prevent,” Moros added.
Former President Joe Biden often criticized the PLCAA as one of its loudest critics, stating in a 2021 Rose Garden ceremony: “Most people don’t realize, the only industry in America, billion-dollar industry, that can’t be sued, exempt from being sued, are gun manufacturers.”
However, gunmakers remain subject to standard product liability rules. If a defect in design or manufacture causes injury or death, the gunmaker can be sued — just as an automaker would be liable for a defective vehicle. The standard Biden and New York Attorney General Letitia James advocate for could be likened to suing Ford if a drunk driver killed someone behind the wheel of an F-150.
New York’s criminal justice system also requires scrutiny. Examples include:
Timothy Bohler, a career criminal with 45 prior arrests who was released on supervised release before chopping off a stranger’s fingers despite dropped violent charges;
David Mazariegos, allegedly involved in beating a man to death while having a history of violent offenses;
Demetri Marshall, an accused subway slasher released despite a violent criminal record;
Jaia Cruz, who pleaded guilty to manslaughter after stabbing a USPS worker to death with a history of knife-related violence;
Two convicted killers released without bail after being arrested for drug-dealing in Greenwich Village due to 2019 bail reforms restricting bail for certain offenses; and
Tyriek Martin, accused of attempting to rape a woman on a subway in 2025 after a 2021 arrest for attacking a 2-year-old child with a suitcase.
Additionally, Attorney General James faces two new federal criminal insurance fraud referrals — mere months after a federal mortgage fraud case against her was dismissed.
New York’s crime issues are of its own making. It should address those problems and stop manufacturing crimes to harass blameless businesses.
