Canoe rental outfits seek protection

Missouri canoe rental companies say they should be held liable if one of their canoes is defective and somebody is hurt as a result, but they should not have to face lawsuits if somebody who rents a canoe from them does something silly miles and miles downstream. Steelville outfitter Robert Bass says that’s been done to him. He says a woman once sued his company because the sun didn’t shine as much as she wanted it to shine during her float trip. Bass and other outfitters want the legislature to pass a law protecting them from nuisance suits like those.