3 minute read Police secure the scene of a shooting incident at the Congregation Chabad synagogue in Poway, north of San Diego. April 27, 2019. REUTERS/John Gastaldo (Reuters) - Victims and survivors of a 2019 mass shooting at a California synagogue can go forward with a lawsuit accusing firearms manufacturer Smith & Wesson of negligently marketing the AR-15 style semiautomatic rifle used by the shooter, a San Diego state judge has ruled. Judge Kenneth Medel of the Superior Court of California for San Diego County rejected Smith & Wesson's argument that the lawsuit was barred by the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), a federal law that generally shields gun manufacturers and sellers from being sued over shootings. San Diego Guns, the store that sold the gun, is also a defendant in the case.