Supreme Court hears Smith & Wesson legal battle with Mexico

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear the case arguments in the frivolous case brought by the Mexican government against Smith & Wesson. On Friday, the Supreme Court ruled in the legal action, which initially targeted several other American manufacturers.

A federal judge will appear in August rejected several companies from the lawsuit, including Glock, Barrett Firearms, Ruger and Company, Sturm, Colt’s Manufacturing, Beretta and Century International Arms.

This left only Smith & Wesson and wholesaler Whitmer Public Safety Group to defend themselves against a foreign government in American courts.

Mexican officials controversially claim that U.S. weapons manufacturers bear responsibility for the country’s well-documented battle with violent drug cartels. Plaintiffs are trying to link the sale of popular sporting rifles to the American public to murders and mayhem south of the border.

Smith & Wesson officials, however, are defending themselves with the Second Amendment and persuasive arguments that Mexico is trying to shift blame for its internal crisis.

Attorney Noel Francisco wrote that the continuation of such massive legal action continues threatens companies supported by the Constitution. “Leaders of the U.S. firearms industry face years of legal costs and the specter of business-wrecking liability.”

In its filing, the company stated that the Mexican government is fundamentally opposed to constitutional rights granted to upstanding Americans.

“Simply put, Mexico abhors the U.S. system that makes firearms readily available to law-abiding citizens in accordance with the Second Amendment.” This filing further notes that Mexican officials are not disguising their belief “that ordinary citizens should not purchase an AR-15 or any firearm that can hold more than ten bullets. And it is disgusting how law-abiding Americans are free to obtain such firearms without having to beg for the government’s mercy.”

What’s the worst-case scenario for the venerable manufacturer?

When Remington was targeted by lawsuits after the Sandy Hook tragedy, the Supreme Court declined to intervene. Now, after multiple bankruptcies and asset sales, the historic company is a shell of its former self.

Remember, the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) protects the gun industry from frivolous lawsuits designed to destroy it.

This federal statute was enacted nearly two decades ago as several municipalities rushed to bust firearms manufacturers through a barrage of taxpayer-funded lawsuits.

A district judge initially ruled that PLCAA’s protections nullified the Mexican government’s claims in the $10 billion lawsuit. That should have been the end of it, but the First Circuit Court of Appeals inexplicably reversed this decision and continued the lawsuit against Smith & Wesson.

Despite loud complaints from anti-gun forces, PLCAA is hardly a shield against any form of legal action against the gun industry. There are exceptions that allow for legal redress if companies commit certain wrongdoing, and the appeals court took advantage of this to allow the proceedings to proceed.

Based on this, Judge William J. Kayatta wrote that the appeals court would continue the proceedings. He expressed the three-judge panel’s belief that it is possible that Smith & Wesson is working “to perpetuate the illicit market in Mexico.”

The company and other Second Amendment defenders argue that pursuing the lawsuit in U.S. courts will cast a shadow over the industry that could last for years. They believe it is nothing more than a brazen attempt by a foreign power to dictate gun control to American citizens, which has been repeatedly rejected by voters.

The Supreme Court opened its new nine-month term on Monday and a ruling in the case could come in July.

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