One of the victims of a New York subway shooting is suing Glock, the manufacturer of the firearm used in the attack, saying its marketing appeals to criminals.
Ilene Steur was one of 10 people shot on April 12 as a crowded subway train pulled into a Brooklyn station.
Her lawsuit comes after New York state in 2021 passed a law allowing people affected by gun violence to sue gunmakers for creating a “nuisance” that endangers public safety and health. Ms Steur asked a judge to order Glock to “eradicate the effects” of its marketing practices.
New York police said Frank James used a Glock pistol he bought in Ohio to open fire after setting off two smoke bombs during the rush hour attack. James has pleaded not guilty.
Ms Steur's civil suit — which was filed in federal court on Tuesday — accuses Austria-based Glock of employing “marketing that emphasises firearm characteristics such as their high capacity and ease of concealment, that appeal to prospective purchasers with criminal intent”.
It also says the company intentionally supplied “more firearms than the legitimate market could bear in order to induce sales in the secondary market”, and failed to train dealers on how to avoid illegal firearms purchases.
“They are aware that their marketing strategies are empowering purchasers with ill intent and endangering the lives of innocent people. This lawsuit seeks to hold the gun industry accountable,” Mark Shirian, a lawyer for Ms Steur, said in a statement.
Glock's US subsidiary did not respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.
The suit follows a wave of recent mass shootings in the US, including one that left 10 dead at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, and another at a Texas elementary school in Uvalde that left 21 dead, including 19 children.
Ms Steur's lawsuit echoes the legal battle that followed the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting, which killed 26 pupils and teachers.
US gun manufacturer Remington — a subsidiary of which made the rifle used in that attack — agreed to a $73 million settlement with the families of nine of the victims earlier this year.
The lawsuit had alleged that Remington and the other two defendants were culpable because they knowingly marketed a military grade weapon that is “grossly unsuited” for civilian use, yet it had become the gun most used in mass shootings.
Agencies contributed to this report
