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Social Products Liability: The Case of the Firearms Manufacturers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 January 2015

George G. Brenkert
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Abstract:

One of the most important and challenging issues of business ethics—or indeed of ethics more generally—is that of “moral responsibility.” And though this problem has been with us from the outset of reflection on ethics and business, the following developments in the late twentieth century have exacerbated its difficulty: the increased mobility among people, the development of increasingly complex technologies with ever more significant consequences, the extension of the distance between people’s actions and the effects of their actions, the extended distance between the manufacturers of products and the consequences of those products, the expanded possibilities for anonymous actions, and the collapse of many customary forms of restraints between both individuals and organizations. As a consequence, I believe, we are in the midst of rethinking and developing new and creative ways of extending our notion of responsibility.

Type
Articles
Information
Business Ethics Quarterly , Volume 10 , Issue 1 , January 2000 , pp. 21 - 32
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Business Ethics 2000

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References

1 Cf. Cicero, “On Duties,” in Selected Works (New York: Penguin Books, 1971).

2 Cf. MacPherson v. Buick Motor Co., 111 N.E. 1050 (N.Y. 1916).

3 “Complaint: Mayor Joseph P. Ganim and the City of Bridgeport v. Smith and Wesson, et al.” Bridgeport, Connecticut. March 23, 1999, p. 11.

4 Mark D. Polston, “Civil Liability for High Risk Gun Sales: An Approach to Combat Gun Trafficking,” Seton Hall Legislative Journal 19, no. 3 (1995).

5 Bridgeport v. Smith and Wesson, p. 11.

6 Cf. Penelas v. Arms Technology. The quoted text is from “Liability Suits Against Gun Manufacturers, Dealers and Owners,” <http://www.handguncontrol.org/legalactiondockets/>

7 “The Economic Costs of Gun Violence,” <http://www.psr.org/econ.htm> (April 2, 1999)

8 “Beretta Defeats Handgun Control, Inc. in California Lawsuit,” <http://www.nrawinningteam.com/beretta.html> (April 1, 1999)

9 “Embassies and Foreign Crime Reporting Agencies,” FBI Uniform Crime Reports (1992); cf. “Handguns,” <http://www.ceasefire.org/html/handguns.html> (April 2, 1999)

10 Kelley v. R. G. Industries, 497 A.2d 1143, 1154 (Md. 1985).

11 This assumes, of course, that carrying a handgun in one’s purse does increase one’s self-protection.

12 Cited in Dennis Henigan, “Victims’ Litigation Targets Gun Violence,” Trial, February, 1995. Cf. <http://www.handguncontrol.org/legalaction/dockets/A3/a3vctmlg.htm> (March 25, 1999).

13 Daniel Wise, “Claim Against Gun Industry on Trial in Federal court,” New York Law Journal, January 7, 1999, p. 1.

14 Cf. “Complaint: City of Chicago v. Beretta U.S. A. Corp., et al.” Chicago, Illinois. November 12, 1998.

15 Vanessa O’Connell, “Jury in Suit That Blames Gun Makers for Shootings Doesn’t Reach Verdict Yet,” Wall Street Journal, February 5, 1999, p. B6.

16 Bridgeport v. Smith and Wesson, p. 25.

17 Ibid.

18 Ibid., p. 3.

19 Ibid., pp. 28f.

20 Cited in Joseph P. Fried, “9 Gun Makers Called Liable for Shootings,” The New York Times, February 12, 1999, p. A1.

21 Roberto Suro, “Brooklyn Case is First to Put Firearms Industry Practices on Trial,” The Washington Post, January 19, 1999, p. A2.

22 Ibid.

23 Ibid.

24 Ibid.

25 Bridgeport v. Smith and Wesson, p. 31.

26 Tom Jones and John McCall have given me various suggestions regarding the present manuscript. I fear that I have accepted too few of them. However, given the argument of this paper, it may be that they remain partially responsible for its present form. I’m also pleased to acknowledge the assistance of Dale Tzeng, who helped me to identify and gather resources for this paper.