Parents of Parkland Shooting Victim Joaquin Oliver Sue U.S. Over Gun Laws
This lawsuit is the first to make the claim that the U.S.’s lack of gun regulation is a direct violation of human rights.
The parents of Parkland, FL, shooting victim Joaquin Oliver are suing the United States government, claiming the country’s gun policies were in 'violation' of their son’s 'right to life and personal security' as dictated in the Declaration of Independence.
'Joaquin Oliver was killed as a consequence of the actions and omissions of the United States of America that enabled and facilitated high-risk firearm sales to unsuitable civilian buyers and prevented the adoption of widely accepted measures to protect persons from being injured or killed by guns,' the lawsuit states.
Joaquin was 17 when he was killed on February 14, 2018, when a gunman opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, killing 17 students and staff members.
This lawsuit is the first to make the claim that the U.S.’s lack of gun regulation is a direct violation of human rights.
The nonprofit Global Action for Gun Violence, as well as the Civil Rights Clinic at George Washington University School of Law, filed the lawsuit on behalf of Joaquin’s parents, Manuel and Patricia Oliver.