{"id":124398,"date":"2023-03-21T00:05:53","date_gmt":"2023-03-21T04:05:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thecollegefix.com\/?p=124398"},"modified":"2023-03-20T07:08:03","modified_gmt":"2023-03-20T11:08:03","slug":"uminn-legal-clinic-will-partner-with-attorney-general-to-sue-gun-companies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thecollegefix.com\/uminn-legal-clinic-will-partner-with-attorney-general-to-sue-gun-companies\/","title":{"rendered":"UMinn legal clinic will partner with attorney general to sue gun companies"},"content":{"rendered":"

The aim is to ‘establish a home for gun violence prevention litigation’<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

The University of Minnesota Law School has created a clinic to target lawful gun manufacturers by training future litigators and filing lawsuits.<\/p>\n

The new clinic, which opened this semester, will \u201cutilize student pro bono legal work to support and litigate cases that help reduce injuries, deaths, and trauma resulting from gun violence,\u201d according to a university announcement<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It will partner with Democratic Attorney General Keith Ellison, who had a record of opposing gun rights while serving in Congress.<\/p>\n

The new clinic will \u201cspur law school and law student engagement in firearms law and the Second Amendment,\u201d \u201cestablish a home for gun violence prevention litigation in the Great Lakes area\u201d and \u201cgrow the pool of litigation expertise and legal resources available for Second Amendment and gun violence prevention matters.\u201d<\/p>\n

The College Fix<\/em> reached out to clinic director Megan Walsh and asked her if the clinic has an institutional stance against the Second Amendment and why legal gun manufacturers are being targeted. She did not respond to an inquiry sent a week ago.<\/p>\n

She stated in the university\u2019s news release that \u201cthere are not enough litigators with expertise in the field, and law schools and legal scholars are under engaged in Second Amendment issues.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Fix<\/em> also asked Mark Cohen, the law school\u2019s communications director, for more information on the law clinic and specifically if there are any concerns about using taxpayer money to take a stance on the Second Amendment. He has not responded to an inquiry sent in the past three weeks.<\/p>\n

The clinic will partner with Attorney General Ellison (pictured<\/em>) to find \u201ccreative\u201d ways to \u201caddress gun violence problems\u201d in Minnesota, Professor Walsh stated in an interview<\/a> with the MinnPost<\/em>. She told the paper that lawsuits are a way to get around what she sees as legislative roadblocks.<\/p>\n

\u201cLitigation is a way to make change when things have been blocked on the legislative level,\u201d Walsh stated. \u201cSome of that might be ensuring that laws that are on the books \u2013 in an effort to prevent gun violence \u2013 are actually being enforced on the ground.\u201d<\/p>\n

MORE:<\/strong> Yale law professor claims gun ownership is about suppressing ‘inner city Blacks’<\/a><\/p>\n

The attorney general has been \u201cworking with civil tools, including bringing affirmative litigation in an effort to address trafficking and he\u2019s looking at what he can do to support neighborhoods that are experiencing disproportionate effects of gun violence in their communities,\u201d Walsh said.<\/p>\n

She said that both the clinic and the office will benefit from each other.<\/p>\n

Ellison\u2019s office \u201cis also going to benefit from the pro bono work with the law students who have\u2026the time and the capacity to really dive into these issues and come up with new solutions and new ideas, and then figure out if they are worth bringing into a court.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI sure wish we would,\u201d Ellison said in 2014, when asked<\/a> by Bill Maher why Democrats do not come out against the Second Amendment.<\/p>\n

The former congressman also said<\/a> he was \u201cQuite proud of [his] \u201cF\u201d rating from the\u201d National Rifle Association in 2018.\u201d<\/p>\n

MORE:<\/strong> New college divestment campaign targets ‘killer’ gun industry<\/a><\/p>\n

IMAGE: 60 Minutes\/YouTube<\/p>\n

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