Guns are the most lethal product sold to the American public and yet it is the one product for which the federal government is not allowed to set safety standards or to enforce a recall.Why Guns Can Only Be Recalled by Manufacturer
Tuesday, 19 Oct 2010
Internal company documents show that at least twice, the Remington Arms Company considered a nationwide recall of its popular 700 series rifles, but decided against it despite thousands of complaints and dozens of lawsuits over inadvertent discharges.
Manufacturers of most other products do not have the authority to make that decision on their own, but guns hold a special place in American law, according to Dallas attorney Jeffrey Hightower, who has tried multiple lawsuits against Remington.
“Remington polices itself,” said Hightower. “The gun industry polices itself.”
..... a federal law passed soon after the creation of the CPSC in the 1970s specifically bars the agency from setting safety standards for firearms.
“The Consumer Product Safety Commission shall make no ruling or order that restricts the manufacture or sale of firearms, fire-arms ammunition, or components of firearms ammunition,” the law says.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms licenses gun manufacturers, but the agency has no authority to recall defective firearms, according to a spokesman.
The issue is crucial to gun rights advocates, who see the prospect of a government-mandated firearm recall as an infringement on their rights under the second amendment.
Why Guns Can Only Be Recalled by Manufacturer
Why were American gun manufacturers allowed the legal freedom and authority to police themselves?
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