Fleet Farm has agreed to pay $1 million and implement "significant" policy changes to prevent the illegal sale of guns to straw buyers, which is a person who purchases a firearm on behalf of someone else.
That is part of a new settlement announced by Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison's office Tuesday.
“I took Fleet Farm to court after the company put the lives of Minnesotans in danger by ignoring clear warning signs and selling guns to straw buyers,” said Attorney General Ellison. “The warning signs that Fleet Farm ignored were so clear that Fleet Farm themselves went on to use those sales as examples of obvious red flags in internal trainings. On behalf of the people of Minnesota, we are holding them to account for that callous behavior. Today’s settlement forces the company to significantly change their internal policies to protect the people of Minnesota and imposes a substantial financial penalty on them.
The settlement comes more than three years after Ellison filed a civil lawsuit against Fleet Farm, alleging the company negligently sold dozens of firearms to straw buyers.
One of those guns was later used in the fatal mass shooting at the Truck Park Bar in St. Paul in October, 2021.
“In our criminal justice system, we hold individuals accountable who harm others, and it is right that we do so,” added Ellison. “We do not need to stop there, though: we can also hold corporations like Fleet Farm accountable under civil law when they sell firearms to people they should suspect will re-sell those guns to dangerous individuals. This outcome should serve as a clear warning to any other gun dealers or retailers who would put their profit ahead of Minnesotans’ safety.”