Gun Maker Files For Bankruptcy Following Lawsuit :: 02/15/2020

There are a lot of gun companies you can name that make quality firearms. At some level, they really all start to be about the same as far as overall quality goes, really. And no, not all of those firearms break the bank, either.

Unless, of course, you’re very poor.

Luckily, there are companies that cater to those poorer individuals. They make affordable firearms that might not be fantastic, but generally are better than a sharp stick.

Of course, those lower-cost manufacturers are often the target for malicious lawsuits and other such creatures. In fact, one recently had to file bankruptcy over such lawsuits.

 A Nevada-based gun manufacturer filed for bankruptcy after Kansas City sued the company over weapons trafficking last month.

In the Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition filed Monday, Jimenez Arms listed assets of less than $50,000 and outstanding liabilities that surpass $1 million, KCUR-FM reported.

This could pose a challenge for the city should it successfully recover compensation in its lawsuit.

The city sued Jimenez in January, alleging that the gun trafficking created a public nuisance in Kansas City, which has one of America’s highest homicide rates.

…

“Kansas City families can rest a little easier knowing that a company responsible for facilitating years of illegal trafficking of guns is no longer operating,” said Alla Lefkowitz, an attorney for the organization. “When firearm companies repeatedly ignore the law and facilitate gun trafficking they bring these sort of consequences on themselves.”

The “organization” is Everytown Law, which is part of Bloomberg’s Everytown For Gun Safety, a group that only tries to push gun control and provides almost nothing at all to do with actual gun safety.

There’s a lot of allegations against Jimenez, but the story is lacking in evidence of any actual wrongdoing by the company.

In other words, it sounds like Jimenez made inexpensive pistols which were then either purchased for illegal resale or stolen from lawful owners at a higher rate than many other guns–something that’s not surprising considering they’re cheap firearms–and that’s somehow their fault.

Of course, this is also why it’s against federal law to sue gun companies.

See, pushing Jimenez into bankruptcy isn’t really that much of a problem. Not for Everytown, though the government of Kansas City might be annoyed. For Everytown Law, this is likely the goal. The reason for the Protect for Lawful Commerce in Arms Act was to prevent such malicious lawsuits designed to do nothing more than make it impossible for gun manufacturers and retailers to do business.

Unfortunately, too many judges have apparently decided none of that matters and are allowing these cases to proceed. As a result, Jimenez has been forced to file for bankruptcy.

Just what Everytown probably wanted all along.

Make no mistake, either. They will not stop with Jimenez. They’ll soon try to argue that any manufacturer whose firearms are used illegally are somehow complicit in the illegal trade of arms.

If someone at Jimenez is breaking the law, prosecute them. Otherwise, this nonsense needs to end.

Tom Knighton is a Navy veteran, a former newspaperman, a novelist, and a blogger and lifetime shooter. He lives with his family in Southwest Georgia. https://bearingarms.com/author/tomknighton/

https://bearingarms.com/tom-k/2020/02/15/gun-maker-files-for-bankruptcy/