Dan Abrams

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Should victims of a terror attack sue the city?

http://www.NewsAndOpinion.com | Back in July, an Egyptian man killed two Israelis and injured seven others when he fired a handgun at an El Al ticket counter at Los Angeles International Airport.

Now the family of one of those killed and others who were injured are suing the city of Los Angeles. The complaint says among other things "No airport police or city security was present to detect or stop this terrorist."

Now keep in mind, El Al security forces killed this guy within seconds. What did they think the city of Los Angeles could have- should have- done to prevent this from happening?

They say more security would have helped and that it took the police too long to arrive at the scene. But again, El Al security was there. They killed the suspect. A different set of facts might make this well, different. But more importantly, are we going to blame cities for every terrorist attack? Have the taxpayers dole out millions every time a terrorist attack isn't foiled?

The argument goes that it was the holiday season. The airport police were on high alert. They should have done better.

Well, maybe, but we all to have accept our new reality - even the lawyers - and that includes possible terror attacks on civilian targets. Every attack infuriates me, particularly on American soil, and I feel for the families who want someone to blame. And while there may be cases where something could have been done, should have been prevented, this is not one of them.

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JWR contributor Dan Abrams anchors “The Abrams Report,” Monday through Friday from 6-7 p.m. ET on MSNBC TV. He also covers legal stories for “NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw,” “Today” and “Dateline NBC.” To visit his website, click here. Comment by clicking here.

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