General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: How Bernie Sanders Helped Derail a Promising Legal Fight Against Gun Violence [View all]thucythucy
(8,069 posts)"What if the plaintiffs are not "repeat offenders"? What if they are hapless victims....
They might, and often are, still required to pay court costs and the defendant's legal fees.
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2017/07/my-daughter-was-murdered-in-a-mass-shooting-then-i-was-ordered-to-pay-her-killers-gun-dealer/
Your concern for multi-billion dollar corporations is duly noted. The same corporations that bankroll the NRA, an anti-Democratic organization with Ted Nugent as a board member, and Oliver North as president. The same organization and industry that spews lies about progressive candidates and does everything in their power to put people like Trump in office. An organization that calls victims of gun violence terrorists. I can think of no single entity--aside from Fox "News"--that has done as much to thwart any progressive agenda as the NRA, and the gun manufacturers that fund it.
As for why law enforcement isn't going after these dealers, I can think of a variety of reasons, assuming that in fact these dealers aren't being prosecuted (and I have at the moment only your word that they aren't). In the case of Indiana dealers selling to Chicago criminals, it might be that Indiana authorities, representing a deep red state, don't see it as a priority. Maybe, like so many others, they're intimidated by the NRA. Maybe--again thanks to NRA lobbying--that division of law enforcement is underfunded, and hamstrung by elected officials kowtowing to the gun lobby and dependent on NRA campaign contributions. Maybe, and here I'm taking a leap--the mostly white law enforcement officials of Indiana and its various localities don't give two solid shits about crimes that target predominantly black people in a predominantly blue city, as long as local businesses continue to pay taxes and fund the Indiana GOP. Ever consider the thought that maybe the main obstacle to going after these gun shops is the very industry you are so dedicated to protecting?
According to the link provided by the OP, the gun manufacturers aren't "at several removes from any criminal or negligent activity." They've been informed of the identity of the gun shops in question, and yet continue to sell to them. That right there is at the very least "negligent activity."
Again, it's too bad none of this will ever be tested in court. But thank God that gun manufacturers will continue to rake in the bucks, and the NRA will continue to be a blight on our politics. Heaven forfend that either institution should ever be held accountable for the harm they do to our society.
Oh, BTW, the family whose story is told at the link had to file for bankruptcy after losing their case against the dealer who sold the gun that killed their daughter. Hopefully that will at last put to rest the terrific anxiety you apparently feel for all those poor, persecuted businesses. It's just strange to encounter such support on this board for a multi-billion dollar industry that has been so successful in quashing the due process rights of victimized individuals.