Court weighs Mexico’s lawsuit against U.S. gun-makers over cartel violence

A federal appellate court is considering whether gun manufacturers should have immunity from lawsuits brought by foreign governments in a case dealing with weapons trafficked across the U.S.-Mexico border to criminal organizations.

The government of Mexico has sued nearly a dozen gun manufacturers, including Smith & Wesson and Glock, on claims of aiding and abetting criminal organizations south of the border.

The Mexican government says the manufacturers know their weapons are sold to gun traffickers and should be held liable.

Mexican officials have asked U.S. courts to require screenings for “red flags” to identify traffickers, limit supply and implement other safety protocols to prevent weapons from flowing into Mexico.

“The Second Amendment is a nonissue,” said Jonathan E. Lowy, who represented the Mexican government before the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The court heard arguments in the case on Monday.

Former U.S. Solicitor General Noel J. Francisco, who represented the gun manufacturers, told the appellate court that there is no evidence the gun companies aid and abet criminal organizations.

Under the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act of 2005, gun manufacturers and dealers are shielded from civil lawsuits in the United States for crimes committed with their firearms.

Still, several gun companies in recent years have settled lawsuits brought to U.S. courts.

The Mexico lawsuit, initially filed in August 2021 in U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, asks judges to determine whether gun manufacturers’ umbrella of immunity extends beyond U.S. borders. Drug cartels, human traffickers and other criminal organizations are known to buy and use weapons supplied to them from north of the border, Mexican officials say.

Mexico filed lawsuits against Smith & Wesson Brands Inc., Barrett Firearms Manufacturing Inc., Beretta USA Corp., Beretta Holding S.p.A., Century International Arms Inc., Colt’s Manufacturing Co. LLC, Glock Inc., Glock Ges.m.b.H., Sturm, Ruger & Co. Inc., Witmer Public Safety Group Inc. and D/B/A Interstate Arms.

The case now is pending before a three-judge panel of the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals: Judges William J. Kayatta Jr., an Obama appointee; Gustavo A. Gelpi Jr., a Biden appointee; and Lara E. Montecalvo, a Biden appointee.

Representing Mexico’s interests, Mr. Lowy insisted that the manufacturers violate federal law, including a ban on machine guns.

“Every year, Defendants’ deliberate business practices result in some 340,000 of their guns being unlawfully imported from the United States into Mexico. Drug cartels and other criminal organizations use these military-style weapons to wreak havoc in Mexico and terrorize its populace,” Mexico argued in its legal brief.

Mexico’s attorneys said sniper rifles and semi-automatic weapons that can be transformed into machine guns have been uncovered across the border.

Mexico has one legal gun store, located on a military base, but one of the world’s highest homicide rates, its filing says. Officials blame the trafficking of U.S. manufacturers’ guns.

“They know they are supplying the cartels. They know their guns are favorites of notorious gun-trafficking rings and are regularly used in horrendous incidents in Mexico,” the brief reads. “Defendants nevertheless refuse to monitor and discipline their distribution systems.”

The U.S. District Court ruled against Mexico, reasoning that violence there is incidental, and applied the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act.

Mexico’s appeal is now in the hands of the 1st Circuit, which could issue its ruling at any time.

Mr. Francisco, the former solicitor general representing the gun manufacturers, said the lawsuit could have sweeping implications for Americans’ gun rights.

“You’re talking about a lawsuit that has potentially crippling effects on firearms owners to obtain firearms,” Mr. Francisco said.

In recent years, gun companies and dealers have settled lawsuits claiming they have liability for mass killings.

In 2022, Remington settled for $73 million with families of the 26 students and educators killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, according to The Associated Press.

In 2004, families of eight victims of the D.C. snipers won a $2.5 million settlement from a gun dealer and Bushmaster Firearms Inc.