Maker of AR-15 expected to ask judge to protect company secrets

Bellis Bellis Photo: Ned Gerard / Associated Press Photo: Ned Gerard / Associated Press Image 1 of / 14 Caption Close Maker of AR-15 expected to ask judge to protect company secrets 1 / 14 Back to Gallery

NEWTOWN — The 10 Newtown families preparing for trial against the nation’s oldest gun maker over the Bushmaster AR-15’s role in the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre want internal documents about the lethality and marketing of the semi-automatic rifle made public.

“Our clients have expressed publicly that there should be as much transparency as possible in these proceedings,” said the families’ attorney, Katie Mesner-Hage. “There is a genuine and justifiable public interest in this case to know what is going on, and to have this not be conducted behind closed doors.”

Remington attorneys are expected to file a proposal at state Superior Court in Bridgeport next week arguing that much of the company information requested by the families should be closed to public scrutiny.

It will be up to Judge Barbara Bellis to decide whether the public’s right to know about the potential landmark case outweighs Remington’s concerns about exposing proprietary information.

A legal expert on Friday said it was important to keep details of the high-profile case open to the public.

“I think it is important because Remington and other gun manufacturers receive special immunity from Congress that hasn’t been given to other industries,” said W. John Thomas, a professor of law at Quinnipiac University. “As a member of the public, I have a right to know if they are abusing this immunity and being negligent.”

The immunity Thomas refers to comes from a 2005 federal law that shields the gun industry from most claims when someone misuses a handgun. But the gun industry can be sued if victims show it ignored the risk that the firearm would be misused.

To make their case, the families propose to show that Remington knew about the lethality of the AR-15 used in the murder of 26 first-graders and educators at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012, and Remington marketed it to civilians anyway.

Remington’s defense is that it made and sold a legal gun, and the company is protected against claims when its gun is misused.

Bellis has scheduled a trial for 2018 and ordered both sides to share evidence. The judge has not ruled on Remington’s recent motion to dismiss the suit.

The battle over internal Remington documents began last month, with the company filing a 12-page objection to the families’ request.

“They broadly seek documents that have no relevance to the specific claims at issue in this case,” wrote Remington’s lead attorneys, Jonathan Whitcomb, of Stamford and James Vogts, of Chicago.

The second and related pretrial battle over the privacy of company information surfaced when attorneys said documents about marketing, customers and business relationships would only be shared if they were sealed by the judge.

Remington, like any corporation being sued, has some right to protect trade secrets from getting into competitors’ hands. It also has the right to keep consultations with its attorneys confidential.

Thomas said keeping pretrial evidence open to the public could have far-reaching effects.

“I do think the potential is there to change how guns are marketed, depending on what is revealed,” Thomas said. “If the public views the gun company activity as culpable or inappropriate, that will bring pressure on Congress to change the law.”

rryser@newstimes.com; 203-731-3342