Court upholds entirety of Attorney General Ellison’s lawsuit against Fleet Farm
Federal court denies Fleet Farm’s motion to dismiss, finds State’s claims can proceed despite federal law shielding the firearms industry
Lawsuit filed October 2022 alleges Fleet Farm negligently sold guns to straw purchasers, including one used in deadly Saint Paul shooting
June 27, 2023 (SAINT PAUL) — Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison hailed the decision issued today by U.S. District Court Judge John R. Tunheim rejecting Fleet Farm’s motion to dismiss the State’s lawsuit against Fleet Farm. Judge Tunheim found that all of the State’s claims were properly pled and were not barred by the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (“PLCAA”) — a federal law granting the firearms industry widespread protection from litigation.
“The Court’s decision that the State’s lawsuit against Fleet Farm should proceed is an important step toward ensuring gun dealers are held accountable when they look the other way while selling to straw buyers. It also sends a clear message that federal law should not — and does not — shield gun dealers from liability if they ignore obvious red flags and sell to straw purchasers,” Attorney General Ellison said. “While the Ramsey County Attorney has criminally prosecuted the perpetrators of the Truck Stop shooting that involved a gun straw-purchased at Fleet Farm, I am using the tools of civil law and my Office to further protect the public from illegally obtained firearms that are used to commit crimes or end up in the hands of people who aren’t allowed to have guns. We now move to discovery to uncover everything that Fleet Farm knew about these straw purchasers and what Fleet Farm did — if anything — to keep the public from being harmed by these purchases.”
In his decision, Judge Tunheim wholly denied Fleet Farm’s motion to dismiss the State’s complaint and held that all five of the State’s claims will proceed. The Court rejected Fleet Farm’s argument that PLCAA shielded Fleet Farm from responsibility. The Court decided that “the State has plausibly alleged that Fleet Farm knew or should have known that it was selling firearms to straw purchasers, who by definition are purchasing weapons for people who cannot purchase weapons legally.” The Court also explained that the State’s allegations against Fleet Farm were “clear examples of how illegally obtained firearms endanger the public in a way that legal firearms typically do not.” Judge Tunheim also found that it was appropriate for the State’s lawsuit to proceed in federal court.
The State’s lawsuit
In October 2022, Attorney General Ellison sued Fleet Farm for five claims related to Fleet Farm’s repeated sale of firearms to straw purchasers — people who illegally purchase guns for others who cannot legally purchase guns themselves — despite obvious warning signs. The lawsuit alleged that Fleet Farm negligently sold firearms to straw purchasers, aided and abetted these criminals, and contributed to gun trafficking in Minnesota by allowing guns to get into the wrong hands.
Two straw purchasers to whom Fleet Farm sold guns, along with several co-conspirators, have been convicted of federal crimes related to their illegal purchases. Fleet Farm sold at least 37 firearms to these two straw purchasers over the course of 16 months, often selling multiple guns in single transactions or over very short periods of time. One of the guns Fleet Farm sold to a straw purchaser was fired in a large-scale shootout in a St. Paul bar on October 10, 2021, that ended in the death of a 27-year-old woman and multiple injured bystanders. Another gun Fleet Farm sold to this same straw purchaser was found by a six-year-old boy in front of his family’s house, where the gun was likely discarded by suspects fleeing from another public shooting incident. Most guns Fleet Farm sold to straw purchasers remain unrecovered, risking additional harm.
The lawsuit seeks to hold Fleet Farm accountable and obtain injunctive relief, including strengthened oversight of Fleet Farm’s operations and increased training to prevent sales to straw purchasers, as well as monetary relief, including disgorgement of Fleet Farm profits from sales to straw purchasers.
