After 26 Years, Gary, Indiana’s Long-Running Lawfare Assault on Gun Makers Finally Comes to an End

NSSF, The Firearm Industry Trade Association, praises the unanimous decision by the Indiana Court of Appeals to end the City of Gary, Indiana’s 26-year-old frivolous lawsuit against firearm manufacturers that sought to hold them responsible for the criminal actions of unrelated and remote third parties. The Court upheld the constitutionality of a recently enacted law — championed by NSSF — providing that only the state of Indiana can bring a lawsuit against a firearm industry member. As a result, it directed the trial court to dismiss the lingering Smith & Wesson Corp. v. City of Gary public nuisance lawsuit, which failed to provide any evidence of wrongdoing despite more than a quarter century of litigation.

“This is a tremendous day for of the rule of law, common sense and the firearm industry,” said Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF Senior Vice President & General Counsel. “The City of Gary never had a serious claim. Instead, it was committed to a losing lawfare strategy to abuse the courts in order to force gun control policy outside of legislative channels. The bottom line is that these sorts of frivolous claims have no business clogging our courts and special-interest groups cannot circumvent elected representative bodies by attempting legislation through litigation. NSSF is deeply grateful to Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita for his strong defense of this law.”

Former Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb signed House Bill 1235 into law in 2024 that “provides that only the state of Indiana may bring or maintain an action by or on behalf of a political subdivision against a firearm or ammunition manufacturer, trade association, seller, or dealer concerning certain matters.” The law “prohibits a political subdivision from otherwise independently bringing or maintaining such an action,” effectively negating the City of Gary’s frivolous claims.

The City of Gary first filed their claims in 1999, as part of a coordinated effort by over 40 big city mayors who conspired together through the U.S. Conference of Mayors with gun control activist from Brady United (formerly known as the Brady Center) trial lawyers.

All these municipal lawsuits have either been dismissed by the courts, e.g., Atlanta, Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Detroit and St. Louis, or simply dropped by several cities, e.g., Boston, Cincinnati, Wilmington and Camden. Many of these municipal lawsuits were dismissed based on state preemption laws enacted between 1999 to 2001 upon which H.B. 1235 is modeled. Like H.B. 1235, these laws — that have been upheld by the courts — reserve to the state the exclusive authority to sue members of the industry except that they generally allow for breach of warranty and related claims for firearms a political subdivision purchased. 

Additionally, Congress passed in a broad bipartisan fashion, and President George W. Bush signed into law, the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) in 2005. The PLCAA blocks lawsuits that attempt to hold firearm and ammunition industry companies liable for the criminal actions of third parties who misuse the industry’s lawful non-defective products. More specifically, this commonsense law ensures that responsible and law-abiding federally licensed manufacturers and retailers of firearms and ammunition are not unjustly blamed in federal and state civil actions for “the harm caused by those who criminally or unlawfully misuse” these products that function as designed and intended.