New York gun lawsuit deliberations resume

In this story: The allegations The defense What's on the line Atlanta lawsuit shot down RELATED STORIES, SITES

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Jurors trying to decide whether handgun manufacturers should be held liable for gun violence began their fifth day of deliberations Wednesday despite twice telling the judge they were deadlocked.

In a note Tuesday to U.S. District Judge Jack Weinstein, the panel said, "We are all very upset. We are starting to fight. We can not [sic] reach a decision. We are emotionally drained & some of us feel physically ill."

The judge sympathized with their mental state and allowed them to break early for the day, but he rejected their contention that they were hopelessly deadlocked in the closely watched civil trial.

"I don't want to make light of it, but you're not being relieved at this point. Everyone has invested too much in this case for you to throw up your hands prematurely," the judge responded.

In that same note jurors also asked the judge for "more direction" and to clarify a charge which says the panel's findings must be "unanimous" on the burden of proof.

Weinstein told them that "burden of proof lies with the plaintiffs" and that it would be inappropriate for him to guide their deliberations on that point.

The allegations

What's on the line

In related developments:

• Atlanta's lawsuit targeting the gun industry was thwarted on Tuesday when Gov. Roy Barnes signed into law a bill that makes Georgia the first state to prohibit its cities and counties from taking gun makers to court.

  The move capped two weeks of lobbying by the National Rifle Association aimed at undermining legal challenges mounted by several cities -- including Atlanta -- to recover the costs of gun-related violence.

  The new law prohibits any Georgia city or county from filing product liability suits against the firearms industry, reserving that right to the state.

  Atlanta Mayor Bill Campbell calls the law unconstitutional and says the city plans to pursue its suit, filed last week, which accuses 17 gun makers of negligently designing firearms with inadequate safety devices and warnings.

• New Orleans' controversial gun swap program with Glock Inc. has been suspended pending an investigation into whether illegally modified weapons have been shipped to the gun maker.

  Under a deal revealed last month, the city sent weapons confiscated from criminals to Glock in exchange for new police weapons. The confiscated guns were not to be resold in Louisiana, and weapons without serial numbers or illegal modifications had to be destroyed.

  But Mayor Marc Morial suspended the deal on Tuesday "until we can determine whether there have been any violations or wrongdoing by (New Orleans police) or Glock representatives in trading weapons that should have been destroyed," he said.

  The investigation will also look into unconfirmed reports that some guns have made their way back to the state.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.