US Supreme Court won’t hear challenge to Chicago lawsuit against gun shop

US Supreme Court won’t hear challenge to Chicago lawsuit against gun shop

The U.S. Supreme Court said on Monday it would not hear a challenge to the City of Chicago’s lawsuit against a Northwest Indiana gun shop.

CHICAGO - The U.S. Supreme Court said on Monday it would not hear a challenge to the City of Chicago’s lawsuit against a Northwest Indiana gun shop.

The backstory:

Back in 2021, the city sued the gun retailer, Westforth Sports, in Gary, alleging the store sold hundreds of guns used in crimes in Chicago for more than a decade, including guns sold to dozens of straw purchasers.

Between 2009 and 2016, attorneys for the city said more than 850 guns purchased at Westforth Sports were recovered at crime scenes in Chicago, more than from any other out-of-state gun shops.

"These firearms have been used to wreak havoc on the streets of Chicago; they have been illegally possessed and linked to a broad range of criminal activity," city attorneys said in a legal brief.

A Cook County circuit court dismissed the city’s lawsuit in 2023 for "lack of personal jurisdiction" over the Indiana business.

An Illinois appeals court reversed that decision and said that Westforth "deliberately and purposely availed itself of the Illinois market, fully aware that the firearms would contribute to criminal activity in Chicago."

A spokesperson for the city's law department said, "We are pleased that the Supreme Court denied plaintiff’s request for review. The City is eager to move forward with the action against Westforth in the trial court."

In a court filing this year, the city’s lawyers said it appeared that Westforth’s store had been closed since the summer of 2023, although the shop had maintained its federal firearms license to operate.

A request for comment from the law firm representing Westforth was not immediately returned.