A jury has ordered a ghost gun company to pay more than $100 million in the death of an 18-year-old Kentucky teen who purchased the company's pistol-building kit online. The verdict, believed to be the largest-ever against a gun seller, was awarded Wednesday following a trial that centered on allegations that Husky Armory LLC skirted federal regulations prohibiting the sale of gun-assembly kits to individuals under 21.
In a wrongful-death lawsuit, the family of Henry Willis argued that he was 18 when he bought the Glock G19 pistol "build kit" from Husky Armory's website in 2023. According to the lawsuit, he assembled the handgun in his garage and used it to end his life six days later. Everytown Law, representing the family, stated that the $104.2 million payout surpasses the $73 million settlement awarded to the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting families by the rifle manufacturer Remington.
Attorneys for Willis contended that Husky Armory failed to comply with federal regulations, including those enacted by the Biden administration a little over a year ago, which mandate serial numbers on homemade weapons and require background checks and age verification for purchasers. The company's website advertised the product as having "everything you need to build your own Glock style pistol from the comfort of your home," and suggested it could be assembled by "nearly anyone with a brain."
Husky Armory LLC, based in Omaha, Nebraska, and its owner, Cody Yurk, did not respond to inquiries and were not present for the trial, according to the family and their attorneys. A state court in Louisville had previously issued a default judgment against the vendor for failing to respond to the lawsuit.
Following a two-day trial, the jury awarded the family $4.2 million in economic damages and $100 million in punitive damages. "This historic verdict sends a powerful message to ghost-gun sellers who set up businesses to profit by circumventing critical safeguards like background checks and age verification," said Dana Mulhauser, an attorney for Everytown Law. "Henry should be home with his family today, and Laura deserved more time and opportunity to help her son heal."
Laura Herp, Willis' mother, described her son as a "kind, gentle child" who had struggled with mental health issues. "A child in crisis should never be able to access a deadly weapon," Herp said. "Companies like Husky Armory thrive off selling to folks who shouldn’t have access to firearms, and they didn’t care who Henry was."