Galliher v. Cabela’s

Cabela’s sold a prohibited purchaser who resided in Ohio a “black powder” firearm — a replica of an antique Army .44 caliber revolver. Brady Legal, with legal alliance partner Cooper & Elliott, sued the gun dealer for illegally selling the black powder firearm that was used to kill then 21-year-old Bryan Galliher.

The family of Bryan Galliher settled their lawsuit against outdoor retailer Cabela’s and its parent company, Bass Pro Group LLC, for selling the gun used to kill him.

Prior to our lawsuit, Cabela’s sold black powder firearms over the telephone. The only training it provided those employees to comply with when selling a black powder firearm to an Ohio customer were to:

• Stop a sale if the customer had a bad credit card
• Ensure it used the correct shipping method

Our lawsuit led Cabela’s to change its business practices and to institute reforms to how it sells these lethal guns, which will help save lives. Cabela’s also instituted sweeping reforms to its marketing and sales practices to keep black powder guns out of the hands of individuals with a violent history and others prohibited by law from possessing a gun.

Brady Legal and Cooper & Elliott filed suit against Cabela’s on August 7, 2018. During our legal battle, Bryan’s killer testified that even after he disclosed to Cabela’s that he was convicted of felony offenses, Cabela’s didn’t ask him anything other than shipping and payment information. He also testified that if Cabela’s had told him the sale was illegal and refused to sell him the gun, he would not have sought one elsewhere, because he ‘wouldn’t buy something [he] can’t have.’

Often referred to as muzzleloaders, black powder guns use modern materials and historical firearm technology, which includes handloading the black powder and the ammunition into the muzzle of the weapon. Although black powder guns are loaded differently, once loaded, they fire just like any modern firearm. As seen in the death of Bryan Galliher, while the technology is archaic, its impact is still lethal.

Brady Legal has represented victims of gun industry negligence for over 30 years and has won more than $60 million in settlements and verdicts in cases brought by Brady on behalf of victims and survivors. Brady has also won landmark precedents holding that gun companies can be held legally responsible for the damage caused by their irresponsible business practices and has forced gun dealers and manufacturers to reform their practices to prevent the sales of guns to dangerous people. Brady has litigated in over 40 states, and won victories in the Supreme Courts of Kansas, Missouri, Ohio, Indiana, Alaska, and appellate and trial courts in California, Florida, Mississippi, New York, Massachusetts, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and other states.

Since 1995, civil litigation firm Cooper Elliott has been helping individuals, families, and business owners find answers to and recover from life’s most tragic events. Cooper Elliott has built a reputation for trying large, important, and complex cases, and the firm has helped its clients across the U.S. obtain hundreds of millions of dollars in jury verdicts and settlements, including some of the largest jury verdicts in Ohio.

Representing individuals and families, the firm’s practice areas include medical malpractice, wrongful death, serious injuries, civil rights violations, wrongful convictions, employment discrimination, products liability, and class actions. Representing businesses, the firm’s practice areas include contingency-fee-based breach of contract, fraud, and complex commercial litigation and arbitration.