Remington agrees to restructuring

NEWTOWN — The beleaguered gunmaker at the center of a wrongful death lawsuit brought by 10 families of Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims has agreed to a restructuring deal in bankruptcy court.

Remington, the maker of the AR-15-style rifle used in the 2012 shooting, had been unable to manage the crushing debt it incurred after investors withdrew their money to avoid association with the crime.

The same AR-15-style rifle was used by a gunman to kill 17 students and staff at a Florida high school on Valentine’s Day.

Remington’s bankruptcy deal came one day after massive youth-led marches in Washington and 800 other cities to memorialize gun violence victims and to call for gun safety legislation.

In papers filed Sunday in federal bankruptcy court in Delaware, Remington outlined a plan to turn over control to its creditors and continue operating with up to $100 million from lenders.

It remains unclear what will happen to its 3,500 or so employees as it tries to put its finances in order.

Meanwhile, the highprofile lawsuit brought against Remington by Sandy Hook families, which was dismissed by a trial court judge in 2016, has been appealed in state Supreme Court. Final arguments were in November, and a ruling could come any day.

“We do not expect this filing to affect the families’ case in any material way,” said Katie-Mesner Hage, an attorney with Koskoff Koskoff & Bieder, which represents several of the Sandy Hook families.

The families’ lead attorney, Josh Koskoff, declined to comment further, except to say cultural attitudes about the gun industry and gun violence have changed since Sandy Hook.

“You would have to be living under a rock not to notice what is going on,” Koskoff said Monday. “The kids are leading the charge.”

On Friday, President Donald Trump signed two bills that have support on both sides of the gun debate in Newtown — a measure to require states and federal agencies to fully report mental health and criminal records to the national background check system, and a measure to fund violence prevention programs in schools.

Po Murray, chairwoman of the Newtown Action Alliance, said her group and other organizations involved in a divestiture campaign against the gun industry have requested talks with an investment fund called BlackRock, a major shareholder in gun companies including Fairfield-based Sturm, Ruger & Co.

“We want to have a conversation with BlackRock and other Wall Street investors about social and corporate responsibility,” said Murray, whose group is among the leading gun violence prevention organizations in the state.

North Carolina-based Remington could not be reached for comment on Monday.

The company, which is one of the largest firearms manufacturers in the country, had a large wartime presence in Connecticut.

In Newtown, the firearm industry’s 12,000-member trade association said it had no comment on Remington’s bankruptcy deal. The National Shooting Sports Foundation does not comment on financial performances of individual companies.

The NSSF has argued the firearms industry is strong, however, despite contentions a pro-gun president in the White House has lessened the urgency Americans feel to buy guns.