Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
New Jersey launches unit to sue gun companies
By
Samantha Max
Published Jul 26, 2022
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images
By
Samantha Max
Published Jul 26, 2022
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
New Jersey is gearing up to hold the gun industry accountable in cases where prosecutors say firearm companies have hurt state residents.
Acting Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said Monday that he is creating a new office to file the lawsuits.
“With the establishment of this office we are sending a clear message to every participant in the firearms industry: if you violate our laws, you will pay.”
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy signed legislation earlier this month that lets the state attorney general sue gunmakers and sellers whose business practices threaten people's health or safety. New York recently passed a similar measure allowing anyone in the state to bring a civil action against the gun industry for irresponsible marketing, or sales strategies that pose a risk to the public.
Since New York’s law took effect, a victim of the subway shooting has used it to sue the gun manufacturer Glock. The law has also paved the way for cases against companies illegally selling so-called ghost guns – kits that allow buyers to assemble their own firearms without going through a background check. Attorney General Letitia James and Mayor Eric Adams have both brought civil complaints against these “ghost gun” retailers.
While lawsuits against the firearm industry used to be common, a 2005 federal law brought the legal strategy to a near-complete halt for years. The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act barred civil lawsuits against gun companies, except in a handful of cases.
A growing number of lawmakers and victims of gun violence have pursued strategies to circumvent the federal law in recent years. In February, the families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims settled with the gun manufacturer Remington, after arguing that the company’s marketing strategy broke Connecticut law. That settlement, though short of a guilty verdict at trial, has been deemed a turning point by some legal experts. Others are more critical of these tactics and believe gun companies need extra protections.
“It becomes sort of this vague determination of bad public policy principles,” Amy Swearer, a legal fellow at the conservative Heritage Foundation, told Gothamist when discussing different plaintiffs’ strategies to hold the firearm industry accountable after the subway shooting victim filed her lawsuit.
“You’re essentially arguing that even though you advertised the gun in a lawful way, you did it in an immoral way, and therefore somehow this induced people to buy the gun, to use it to attack civilians, and now you’re responsible,” she said.
The National Shooting Sports Foundation and multiple members of the gun industry have tried to block New York's law in court. A judge rejected their claim in May. The groups plan to appeal.
Tagged
new jersey
gun
attorney general
Samantha Max
Samantha reports on whether New Yorkers feel safe and whether the institutions that are supposed to protect them are working. Before coming to WNYC/Gothamist, she spent three years covering the criminal justice system in Tennessee for Nashville Public Radio. Her reporting on Nashville's police department received multiple awards, including the Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize. Samantha was also part of the inaugural class of Report for America, a service journalism program that sends up-and-coming reporters to local newsrooms across the country. She is a Northwestern University grad, a Baltimore native and fluent in Spanish. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal: samanthamaxwnyc.93.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
NYC tow companies busted for ripping off drivers must give $67K in refunds, city says
Mayor Mamdani has expanded enforcement on towing scams, but the unlicensed towing industry remains largely unregulated.
By
Liam Quigley
Published Oct 2, 2026 at 4:47 p.m. ET
Off-duty NYPD officer stabbed in the Bronx, police say
Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Commissioner Jessica Tisch visited the officer in the hospital.
By
Ryan Kost
News
Off-duty NYPD officer stabbed in the Bronx, police say
Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Commissioner Jessica Tisch visited the officer in the hospital.
By
Ryan Kost
DOC negligence factored in death at Rikers' Bellevue hospital outpost, jail officials say
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Conductor on NYC subway that dragged man to death may have skipped safety check, source says
By
Stephen Nessen
NYPD still searching for man who threw burning substance on victim in East Harlem
By
Ryan Kost
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .