Everytown Law, Arnold & Porter, Fuller Wallner Announce Lawsuit Against Major Sporting Goods Chain for Providing Handgun to Underage Teenager, Resulting in His Death by Suicide

Suicide by Firearm is a Leading Cause of Death in the United States, Especially for Teenagers; Yet, Without Taking Any Safeguards, Scheels Handed an Operational Gun to a Teenager, Who Immediately Used It on Himself in the Store

September Marks National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month; If You or Someone You Know is in Crisis, Please Call or Text 988, or Visit 988lifeline.org/chat for Free 24/7, Confidential Support

MINNESOTA – Today, Everytown Law, Arnold & Porter, and Fuller Wallner announced the filing of a lawsuit in Minnesota state court on behalf of Sarah Van Bogart against Scheels All Sports, Inc., a sporting goods company with locations across the country. Ms. Van Bogart seeks to hold Scheels accountable for providing a handgun to her 19-year-old son, resulting in his death by suicide inside of Scheels’s store in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. Today’s filing alleges her son Jordan would be alive today if the defendants hadn’t provided a firearm to a teenager who was too young to purchase it. 

On August 22, 2022, 19-year-old Jordan rode his bicycle to Scheels’s Eden Prairie location and proceeded to the firearms department on the second floor. As alleged in the complaint, Scheels employee William Ballantyne, also named as a defendant in the suit, handed a handgun to Jordan without requesting to see his identification or proof of age, despite the fact that he was too young to purchase a handgun, appeared much younger than his age, and well below the legal age of 21. Less than half a minute passed from the time Jordan pointed to the gun he wanted to see to him holding an unlocked and operable Taurus handgun.  Ballantyne simply unlocked the cabinet and handed the gun to Jordan. 

Further, the complaint alleges that Ballantyne delivered the handgun to Jordan without a trigger lock or other disabling device, and with a magazine in place.  While the magazine was empty, it was ready to receive ammunition, which was easily accessible to customers and openly available in abundance on the shelves in Scheels’ store. These negligent actions, contrary to industry custom and practice of responsible firearms dealers, facilitated Jordan’s ability to take the gun unlawfully provided to him, load it with a bullet, and end his life right in the Scheels store. 

“As stated in the complaint, Jordan would be alive today had the defendants not given him a handgun that he was too young to purchase,” said Alla Lefkowitz, Managing Director of Affirmative Litigation at Everytown Law and counsel for Jordan’s mother, Sarah Van Bogart. “It is well documented that putting time and space between a person in crisis and a firearm can reduce suicidal risk and save lives. Instead, Scheels took less than 30 seconds to place an operable gun in Jordan’s hands. This lawsuit seeks to impose accountability on those whose actions led to Jordan’s tragic death.”

“Jordan was kind, artistic, and full of empathy and compassion for others. Our family misses him every single day,” said Sarah Van Bogart. “Far too many mothers share my pain. Too many families share an empty chair at the kitchen table because of suicide by firearm. Jordan should have never been handed that gun, let alone an unlocked weapon just steps away from accessible ammunition. My son should be alive today. I want to hold Scheels accountable to make sure no mother experiences a similar tragedy in the future.”

“This is a case about Scheels putting profits over people. It is about corporate responsibility. It is about following rules. Scheels needs to be held accountable for its negligent conduct in this case,” said Jay Pederson of FullerWallner.

“We are proud to partner with Everytown Law and Fuller Wallner in representing Sarah and her family to address Jordan’s tragic and avoidable death, and to seek accountability for those that enable the growing suicide by gun problem that plagues this country,” said Michael Schissel of Arnold & Porter.

Suicide by firearm is a leading cause of death in the United States. Over the past decade, the firearm suicide rate among young people has increased faster than among any other age group. In Minnesota, an alarming 77% of gun deaths are suicides, and 57% of firearm deaths among children and teens are due to suicide. For this reason, both gun stores and gun industry trade associations educate and train gun retailers about the prevalent risk of suicide by firearm. 

As alleged in the complaint, despite policy shifts towards public safety by some of the largest gun retailers nationwide — and despite public requests for Scheels to consider adopting similar policies to prevent suicides and mass shootings — Scheels has done little to address its role in these crises.  At the same time, Scheels’s carelessness with respect to the display and delivery of guns is well-documented. Numerous incidents of individuals leaving Scheels stores with a firearm have been reported. Given this history, the complaint alleges Scheels was acutely aware of the importance of taking great care in the delivery of firearms. 

The lawsuit was filed in Hennepin County District Court in Hennepin County, Minnesota. The causes of action in the complaint include negligent entrustment and wrongful death.

Everytown Law is the largest and most experienced team of litigators in the U.S. working to advance gun violence prevention in the courts. Everytown Law has been and is involved in several other lawsuits seeking accountability from the gun industry. Current cases include litigation on behalf of the cities of Chicago and Philadelphia against some of the largest suppliers of crime guns into those cities; on behalf of victims of mass shootings in Buffalo, Uvalde, Highland Park, and Boulder, CO; and against online ghost gun retailers. The Everytown Law team representing the plaintiff includes Alla Lefkowitz, Managing Director, and Nina Sudarsan, Counsel. 

FullerWallner, Ltd. is a litigation firm that has been serving victims and their families for more than 50 years in serious injury and death cases.

Arnold & Porter combines sophisticated regulatory, litigation, and transactional capabilities to resolve clients’ most complex issues. With over 1,000 lawyers practicing in 15 offices worldwide, we offer deep industry experience and an integrated approach that spans more than 40 practice areas. Through multidisciplinary collaboration and focused industry experience, we provide innovative and effective solutions to mitigate risks, address challenges, and achieve successful outcomes.

More information regarding the specifics of this case can be found here.

September marks National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, a time to remember the lives taken by suicide, honor the survivors of suicide loss, and promote hope and healing. Every September, Everytown for Gun Safety recommits to honoring survivors of firearm suicide with action.

If you or someone you know is in crisis, you can call or text 988, or visit 988lifeline.org/chat to chat with a counselor from the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, previously known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline provides 24/7, free, and confidential support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress anywhere in the US.