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http://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/19/n...00&en=bd62ceb02297bdee&ei=5062&partner=GOOGLE
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/19/n...00&en=bd62ceb02297bdee&ei=5062&partner=GOOGLE
Lawyer Suing Gun Makers Seeks Testimony of Opposing Counsel
By WILLIAM GLABERSON
Lawyers suing gun manufacturers in Brooklyn federal court have asked a judge for an unusual order that would force two longtime firearms industry lawyers to testify about whether the lawyers themselves undermined proposals for gun safety.
The move by lawyers for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, which filed the suit in 1999, is tied to a disclosure this month in a separate case in California that the first whistle-blower had defected from the gun industry. The whistle-blower, Robert A. Ricker, a former senior firearms industry lobbyist, claimed that industry lawyers "consistently opposed" any action by gun manufacturers to control illegal gun distribution.
Two of the lawyers Mr. Ricker named, James P. Dorr and Timothy A. Bumann, represent gun makers in the Brooklyn suit, which involves claims that members of the N.A.A.C.P. were "disproportionately injured" by illegal handguns. The battle over the two lawyers provides a snapshot of what appears to have become a personal fight among the lawyers as both sides prepare for the trial that is to begin on March 24.
The association's lawyer, Elisa Barnes, said yesterday that she now views the two industry lawyers as vital, though unwilling, witnesses for her case. She added that her request to compel their testimony was a first step toward trying to get them disqualified from handling the case.
"They can't remain as lawyers for the companies in this case," she said, "because they have crossed over the line and become participants." Mr. Dorr and Mr. Bumann represent two of the largest gun manufacturers, Sturm, Ruger & Company and Taurus International Manufacturing.
In letters filed in court, Mr. Dorr and Mr. Bumann said Ms. Barnes's unusual request was based on "unsupported and baseless accusations." A lawyer representing Mr. Dorr in opposing Ms. Barnes's request, John A. Herfort, said yesterday that it was not supported by the law and should be denied.
In his filing, Mr. Dorr said Ms. Barnes was making "much ado about nothing." He said the contact occurred at "simply `networking' meetings" among firearms lawyers. Mr. Bumann's filing said Ms. Barnes was trying to "distract the court and defendants while deciding how to avoid eventual dismissal" of her suit.
Mr. Ricker is a former chief lobbyist and executive director of the American Shooting Sports Council, which was at the time the main trade group for the gun industry. In his statement filed in the California case, he said industry lawyers had undercut proposals to have the industry take more control of the distribution of guns.
A central issue in the Brooklyn case is whether gun manufacturers had what Ms. Barnes calls a "see no evil, hear no evil" policy that fostered illegal handgun distribution. Mr. Ricker said that some of the industry's lawyers argued that if the industry took action to control the illegal market in handguns, "it would be an admission of responsibility."
A legal-ethics rule provides that in some circumstances a lawyer can be required to withdraw as an advocate when he becomes a witness. Roy D. Simon Jr., a legal ethics professor at Hofstra University School of Law, said the rule was intended to keep separate the role of lawyer and witness. Professor Simon said efforts to force lawyers to testify were often made in cases marked by extreme bitterness among lawyers. "Any motion to disqualify a lawyer is a hostile act," he said.
The Brooklyn gun case has been marked by repeated confrontations among the lawyers. In a Feb. 5 letter to a federal magistrate, Cheryl L. Pollak, Ms. Barnes said Mr. Dorr and Mr. Bumann "participated in the subverting and corrupting of the legal system."
Mr. Dorr responded that Ms. Barnes's accusations were part of a pattern of unprofessional conduct.
Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company
