Portland, Ore. – A lawsuit filed against an Oregon Coast gun dealer is moving forward after a Multnomah County judge denied the dealer’s motions to dismiss.
The wrongful death suit is the result of a fatal shooting in April 2013.
The lawsuit alleges North Bend’s World Pawn Exchange should have known the guns they were selling to Diane Boyce were “straw purchases” and she was in fact buying guns for her son.
A straw buyer purchases guns from a licensed dealer with the intent to give the gun to someone else under false pretenses.
The suit claims Boyce’s son, 30-year-old Jeffrey Boyce, used one of the guns she purchased to kill Kirsten Englund in April, 2013.
The Brady center to Prevent Gun Violence calls the case “the first of its kind in Oregon,” according to an Oregonian/OregonLive report.
According to the lawsuit, if the sellers had followed the law and industry standards, the gun used to kill Englund would have never ended up in the hands of Jeffrey Boyce.
Last year, Diane Boyce agreed to pay a $400,000 settlement to the family of Kirsten Englund.
With the judge’s latest decision to allow this case to continue, World Pawn Exchange could be held liable for the death of Englund.
The Brady Center said the case could have far-reaching implications for gun dealers nationwide, as they could be held responsible if the guns they sell “illegally” are used in crimes.
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