No Federal Courts For Smith & Wesson In Highland Park Shooting Suits

HIGHLAND PARK, IL — A federal appeals court upheld a ruling requiring gunmaker Smith & Wesson to defend itself in Lake County court against allegations it was responsible for the Highland Park parade shooting.

A three-judge panel of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals last week rejected an appeal from the manufacturer of the rifle used by the alleged gunman seeking to move a series of lawsuits filed on behalf of victims and survivors of the shooting into federal court, where Congress has provided the firearm industry broad immunity from civil suits.

Originally filed in Lake County Circuit Court in September 2022, the lawsuits allege that Smith & Wesson negligently marketed firearms such as the M&P15 semiautomatic rifle, appealing to young men prone to violent behavior, contributing to the mass shooting that left seven dead and at least 48 injured.

Charged with the murder of Katie Goldstein, Irina McCarthy, Kevin McCarthy, Stephen Straus, Jacki Sundheim, Nicolás Toledo and Eduardo Uvaldo and the wounding of dozens of others, Robert E. Crimo III is being held at Lake County Jail and scheduled to stand trial in February 2025.

Crimo and his father, who has pleaded guilty to reckless conduct charges for his role facilitating his son's acquisition of an AR-15-style semiautomatic long gun, are also named as defendants in the suits. Neither of them consented to the gunmakers abortive attempt to remove the case from state to federal court.

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The state law claims against the gunmaker, the alleged shooter and his father are based on the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act, and the Illinois Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act. They contend that the M&P15 is, essentially, a military weapon and the company's marketing was dangerously appealing to potential mass shooters.

Lawyers for the gunmakers argued that they should be treated as "federal officers" due to the federal government's role in firearm regulations, but a district judge tossed out that claim in October 2023 and sent the case back to the Waukegan courthouse, prompting Smith & Wesson's recently rejected appeal.

In a nine-page unanimous decision, Circuit Judge Frank Easterbrook reiterated that being regulated by a federal agency does not make a corporation into a federal agent.

The gunmaker also hoped to convince federal judges that the lawsuits include separate claims — that the M&P15 is a machine gun and that it was advertised improperly — but Easterbrook determined they were actually different legal theories supporting the same claim.

"The core claim in these suits is that Crimo killed and injured multiple persons. Crimo’s father and the other defendants may bear secondary liability for their roles in facilitating his acts," Easterbrook said. "But the complaint does not state separate 'claims'—one for selling a machine gun and another for selling the M&P15 using inappropriate messages. Those are instead separate legal theories, which may imply separate methods of proof but do not multiply the number of claims."

The Highland Park survivors are echoing the legal strategies used in past high-profile lawsuits against the firearm industry, including the suit from families of the victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting that resulted in a $73 million settlement with gunmaker Remington.

The approach focuses on allegations that the industry contributes to gun violence by targeting susceptible demographics with its marketing practices.

In sending the suits back to state court, Easterbrook suggested that the gunmaker may end up having to cover its opponents' costs following its failed foray into federal court.

"The district judge," he said, "should consider whether Smith & Wesson must reimburse the plaintiffs’ costs and fees occasioned by the unjustified removal and appeal."