Families of Texas Church Shooting Victims Sue Gun Retailer
Mar 3, 2019, 5:16 PM | Updated: Jun 8, 2022, 5:15 pm
SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, TX - NOVEMBER 12: The First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs is turned into a memorial to honor those who died on November 12, 2017 in Sutherland Springs, Texas. The inside of the church has been painted white with 26 white chairs placed around the room. On each chair is a single rose and the name of a shooting victim. The chairs are placed throughout the room at the location where the victim died. The memorial will be open to the public. Devin Patrick Kelley shot and killed the 26 people and wounded 20 others when he opened fire during Sunday service at the church on November 5th. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
(Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Family members of victims of a Texas church shooting are suing a sporting goods chain that sold the weapons used in the 2017 massacre.
The lawsuit filed in state district court in San Antonio alleges Academy Sports & Outdoors illegally sold the assault-style rifle, high-capacity magazine and ammunition to Devin Kelley. It argues Kelley shouldn’t have been able buy the firearm from the New Braunfels, Texas, store because he showed an ID from Colorado, which prohibits the sale of high-capacity weapons.
Kelley used the weapons to kill more than two dozen people at the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs. Each family seeks $1 million in damages.
Some families have also separately sued the U.S. Air Force for failing to report Kelley’s past crimes to a federal database.
