[JURIST] The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on Wednesday dismissed [opinion, PDF] a lawsuit filed by the city of New York against gun manufacturers, ruling that gun makers were immune from suit under a 2005 federal law [JURIST report] that shields the firearms industry from civil lawsuits brought by cities, municipalities and victims of gun crimes. The ruling overturns a decision by a lower court that found the court had jurisdiction to hear the case.

New York originally filed the lawsuit in 2000, arguing that gun makers and dealers should be more closely regulated to stem the flow of illegal guns into the city. In 2006, New York City filed another lawsuit [JURIST report] against 15 rogue out-of-state gun dealers; that suit sought to compel the dealers to undergo mandatory training and to pay compensatory damages to the city and punitive damages to victims. Reuters has more.

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