Senate Passes S.397, "The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act"

Late Friday, the Senate passed "The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act" on a bipartisan vote of 65 - 31. It reaffirmed the basic principle that manufacturers of lawfully sold non-defective products should not be liable in the event of subsequent criminal misuse of these products, over which the manufacturers have no control.

"This is a great day for all those who believe in fairness and personal responsibility," said Sturm, Ruger President Stephen L. Sanetti. "Court after court around the nation has affirmed our strong belief that the law should not be used by advocacy groups to allow legislation from the bench, particularly in such emotionally charged and heavily regulated areas as firearms sales, ownership, and use. In this day of national security concerns, not one penny of taxpayer money should be wasted on misguided mayoral lawsuits against companies who proudly arm our police."

"Our industry has successfully stood up to this heavy onslaught by trial lawyers, gun control extremists, and opportunistic politicians who would impose absolute liability on us for acts which we could not possibly control, intending to run us out of business and deprive law-abiding consumers of their right to purchase firearms in the process. It didn't work," he continued.

"Unfortunately, ours is not the only industry under such attack. We hope that this law, firmly expressing the will of the people and their elected representatives, will lead the way to prevent other attempted abuses of the courts. We urge President Bush to sign this bill immediately, and we sincerely thank all those who worked so hard to make it law," Sanetti concluded.

The bill as approved by the Senate will also require that firearms dealers provide a "secure gun storage or safety device" with the sale of every handgun. Federal regulations already require that all retail firearms dealers make locking devices available to consumers. Sturm, Ruger was a pioneer in voluntarily supplying locking devices with its pistols beginning in 1987, almost 20 years ago. All its firearms include an appropriate locking device in addition to their many internal safety mechanisms, which is virtually the unanimous practice within the firearms industry. Also, firearms industry lock giveaway programs have been in place for years, with over 20 million locks handed out free of charge.