Judge tosses straw purchase lawsuit against Cabela’s

DOVER, Del. (AP) — A Delaware judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed against sporting goods retailer Cabela’s by the family of a woman who was killed with a gun obtained through a straw purchase.

The family of Keshall “KeKe” Anderson of Wilmington claimed that Cabela’s was negligent in selling a handgun to a woman who bought it for her boyfriend, a convicted felon prohibited from possessing a firearm.

The gun was later obtained by two 16-year-old boys and used in a 2016 shooting that claimed the life of the 19-year-old Anderson, who was not the intended target.

The judge agreed with Cabela’s that the retailer could not be held liable because it complied with a state law requiring federal criminal background checks for gun purchasers and was given permission to proceed with the sale.