LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A shell gun company has been ordered to pay more than $100 million for the death of a Kentucky teenager who had purchased the company’s gun-building kit online.

The verdict, believed to be the largest ever handed down against a gun dealer, was handed down by a jury Wednesday following a trial focused on whether the seller, Husky Armory LLC, circumvented federal regulations prohibiting the sale of gun assembly kits to those under 21.

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EDITOR’S NOTE: This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, the US National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available by calling or texting 988. There is also an online chat at 988lifeline.org. Helplines outside the US can be found at www.iasp.info/suicidalthoughts.

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In a wrongful death lawsuit, Henry Willis’ family said he was just 18 years old when he purchased the Glock G19 pistol “build kit” on Husky Armory’s website in 2023. He assembled the gun in his garage (he told his father it was a transistor radio) and used it to end his life six days later.

Everytown Law, which represented the family, said the $104.2 million settlement was the largest ever against a gun seller, surpassing the $73 million settlement awarded to families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting by rifle maker Remington.

It comes a little more than a year after the Supreme Court upheld regulations enacted by the Biden administration that required serial numbers on homemade guns and required buyers to complete background checks and age verification.

Willis’ attorneys said Husky Armory had failed to meet each of those requirements.

Its website advertised that the product had “everything you need to build your own Glock-style pistol from the comfort of your home,” noting that the weapon could be assembled by “almost anyone with a brain,” according to the lawsuit.

Inquiries to Husky Armory LLC and its owner, Cody Yurk, were not immediately returned. The company, based in Omaha, Nebraska, was not present at the trial, according to the family and its attorneys.

At a news conference Thursday, Willis’ mother, Laura Herp, described her son as a “kind and gentle boy” who had struggled with mental health issues in the months before his death.

“A child in crisis should never be able to access a deadly weapon,” Herp said. “Companies like Husky Armory thrive by selling to people who shouldn’t have access to firearms, and they didn’t care who Henry was. They didn’t even bother to show up to trial.”

A state court in Louisville had previously entered a default judgment against the seller for failing to respond to the lawsuit. After a two-day trial this week, a 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 create businesses to make a profit by circumventing critical safeguards like background checks and age verification,” said Dana Mulhauser, an attorney with Everytown Law. “Henry should be home with his family today and Laura deserved more time and opportunities to help her son heal.”