“A Manhattan boutique owner is suing craigslist.com for $10 million, claiming he was shot with a gun purchased on the popular Web site.” Police say Jesus Ortiz, described as a schizophrenic resident of Calvin Gibson’s East Village neighborhood, shot Gibson in an apparently random attack. Gibson “claims Ortiz told the cops that he bought the gun on craigslist, and that the suspect’s mother told others the same story.” (Jennifer Fermino and Philip Messing, “Man Shot by ‘Craigslist’ Gun Takes Aim at Site”, New York Post, Sept. 5).
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Gun ads are banned from craigslist, wonder how that will play into this. He should have said he used localsalesnetwork.com
I don’t get it. The suit says, “But for defendant’s negligence in failing to supervise and monitor the content of the ads placed on its Internet service, Jesus Ortiz, could never have legally obtained the handgun,” then goes on to say that the suspect has a criminal record isn’t legally able to purchase/own a handgun.
Either the attorney who filed the lawsuit doesn’t understand the different between an legal and illegal gun sale, or doesn’t care and is just looking for $$$$. If Craigslist pulled the ad, chances are Ortiz would have looked elsewhere for a firearm.
I guess that means it is OK to sue a newspaper because they ran a classified ad that was used by a person without a driver’s license to purchase a car with which was later involved in a auto accident.
Something tells me it is about the money. But given the outcome between Craig’s List and a group of Chicago tenants (and their attorneys – Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Inc. v. Craigslist Inc.), that same something which tells me it is about the money also tells me that money won’t be flowing away from Craig’s List.