The government of Mexico is suing five U.S. gun sellers in U.S. courts in Arizona, claiming the U.S. businesses are illegally engaging in arms trafficking for cartels in that crime-ravaged country.
The new lawsuit comes after a federal judge in Massachusetts threw out a $10 billion lawsuit on Sept. 30 that Mexico brought against arms makers including Smith & Wesson that claimed U.S. companies deliberately undermined that country’s draconian gun laws by making “military-style assault weapons” that found their way to drug cartels and criminals.
The judge in that case found that the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) of 2005 “unequivocally bars lawsuits seeking to hold gun manufacturers responsible for the acts of individuals using guns for their intended purpose.” The PLCAA was enacted to protect the industry from frivolous lawsuits filed against businesses related to crimes they did not commit….