While the Media & Anti-Gun Orgs Hail Lucky Gunner Settlement as a Bit Win, the Lawsuit Achieved Essentially Nothing

Following the 2018 shooting in a Santa Fe, Texas high school, Michael Bloomberg’s Everytown for Gun Safety sued ammunition retailer Lucky Gunner in an attempt to skirt the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms act. After years of lawfare litigation in a failed attempt to bankrupt the ammo seller, the lawsuit was settled this week.

Everytown and the media hailed the settlement as some kind of unprecedented victory. The Houston Chronicle trumpeted the settlement this way…‘Seen as first of its kind, Santa Fe shooting families reach settlement with online ammunition sellers.’ But when you read the Chronicle’s story, it becomes clear that Everytown actually came away with…nothing.

Everytown Law, the gun violence prevention organization that represented one of the families in the lawsuit, announced Thursday that the case had been settled. The organization also said the companies agreed to “maintain an age verification system at the point of sale for all ammunition sales.” The agreement is the first of its kind, the organization said. 

In agreeing to “maintain an age verification system at the point of sale,” Lucky Gunner conceded nothing. The company has had an age verification system in place for years. In other words, Lucky Gunner agreed to keep using the same system to verify buyers’ age that they’ve always had.

So the result of the settlement is, Everytown achieved essentially nothing in the settlement…besides bleeding hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal expenses out of Lucky Gunner, which was always Everytown’s real goal in filing the suit.

Lucky Gunner issued this statement . . .

It should come as no surprise that anti-Second Amendment activists will do and say anything to push their agenda, including using tragedy to further their cause. Following a 2018 shooting in Santa Fe, Texas, the activists at Everytown Law saw an opportunity to do just that. The Michael Bloomberg-funded group spearheaded a lawsuit against Lucky Gunner with one clear goal: to drive us out of business. They failed. This week, we announce the dismissal and settlement of that lawsuit.

We spent three years vigorously defending against this lawsuit and the many false allegations levied against our company and its employees. We refused to back down and were committed to fighting as long as necessary to prove we did nothing wrong.

Our loyal customers and suppliers know we follow the law. We are proud of that fact. In the end, a plaintiff and one of the victims of the shooting, Trent Beazley, even said, “Upon reflection and review of the facts, I believe that Lucky Gunner did not break a law.”

Clint McGuire, an attorney for several of the plaintiffs, echoed that sentiment during a press conference highlighting lobbying efforts to change Texas ammo sales laws.

“There is not a law in the State of Texas that requires ammunition sellers – whether they are brick and mortar or whether they are online stores – to require proof of age before they sell ammunition,” McGuire said. But he sued us anyway.

Ending this lawsuit now allowed us to achieve several goals. First, we protected our reputation for following the law. Second, we stopped wasting money on lawyers so we can put it to better use buying inventory for our customers. Finally, we avoided the risk that the jury would incorrectly apply the law, which could set precedent that would hurt your Second Amendment rights going forward.

We are thankful the truth is finally out, even if most in the legacy media have wrongly painted this to be a groundbreaking win for anti-Second Amendment activists. That simply isn’t true. We agreed to continue with the same age verification process we have been using since 2019. We did not agree to change any part of our business as a part of the resolution of this lawsuit.

“We’ve spent years investing in systems and processes to ensure that buying ammo online is secure, convenient, and cost-effective,” Jake Felde, Lucky Gunner’s Chief Executive Officer said. “If you’re a regular customer, you won’t notice any difference in the experience.”

Helping you exercise your Second Amendment rights is our privilege. We are overwhelmed by the support we have received these past three years, and by the passion our customers show for preserving freedom. We stand ready to serve you for years to come.