N.Y. Passes First Gun Control Law Since Newtown Massacre

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Permalink Reply by Jim Spoor on January 16, 2013 at 5:56pm

As a NY gun owner, I am not happy. The law is not 100% bad. It did toughen some aspects of our mental health system and did offer stiffer penalties for those who would specifically target first responders. However, outlawing magazines, criminalizing an entire category of modern sporting rifles, and mandatory registration is too far of an over reach. As we know, the number of crimes committed with this type of firearm is miniscule. Whether a magazine holds 7 rounds, or 10 or 30 is mostly irrelevant. As always, punish the criminal, not an inanimate piece of equipment. Besides when a law says things like you can possess a 10 round magazine, but it is illegal to put more than 7 rounds in it, or my 10 shot .22lr Ruger 10/22 is now no good, (not the firearm, just the magazine is evil), but my 15 shot Marlin 60 .22lr is perfectly fine; the law is bad. There is no practical difference.

Of course the fastest reload has always been the New York reload. Now this is even more true.

 

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Permalink Reply by Timothy W MIller on January 16, 2013 at 7:02pm

ITS DOESN'T MATTER HOW STRICT THEY CHANGE THE LAWS. IF SOMEONE WANTS TO OBTAIN A FIREARM OR AMMO AND USE IT TO COMMIT A CRIME THEY CAN OBTAIN ONE ANYWHERE. MAKING TOUGHER LAWS WILL NOT CHANGE ANYTHING OR PEOPLES MINDS TO COMMIT CRIMES. 

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Permalink Reply by Debra Paradiso on January 16, 2013 at 10:09pm

My years in Law Enforcement I have witnesses a long and ARDUOUS struggle to prevent those who Own, Carry and Sell Illegal Weapons. The laws, their fines and imprisonment have not deterred the Criminal, it just introduced another challenge for them. The two students involved in the Columbine Shooting acquired 2 9 MM and 2 shot-guns through a friend who purchased two weapons at a gun show (red flags unnoticed) another weapon was purchased through a friend for $500.00.  Not to mention the 99 explosives.  This Massacre was calculated and premediated for months.   Prior to this shooting The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office conducted an investigation as a result of complaints.  The investigation proved there were threats and anticipated violence directed toward Columbine High School.   This is a clear case of prevention, even with the fire power these two students possessed.  The Justice System in the Columbine Shooting failed with a coverup Affidavit that was never filed causing the death of 13 people.   IN NYC a misdemeanor...or charge for carrying more than 7 rounds in a magazine, the only individuals that will be charged with this are those who are already in progress of breaking another LAW and engaging in another crime. So this misdemeanor charge will just be another additional one. In New Jersey it is a Disorderly Persons charge. Where is the deterrent?  Where is the alleviation or lightening of Teachers, Students and Parents to gain comfort and contentment? 

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Permalink Reply by John Booth on January 18, 2013 at 1:57pm

I am a life long rural New Yorker from the Adirondack region who's rights vanished overnight and watched a piece of America die 15JAn13 at 16:30EST.  I spent my entire career in the military seeing the aftermath of "sensible gun laws".  My family endures the results of "sensible gun laws" to this day.  This was so hastily planned and rammed through there weren't provisions for LEO's.  What sense did that make?  How does one propose we cross state data with federal data without breaking yet another law (when conducting NICS for ammo purchases)?  What happens to LEO's when the very suppliers of our gear are run out of business due to this overreach of government?  Is the government going to enter the ammo and firearms business?  Would you trust gear made by the government?  Personally, when politicians start tinkering with our Bill of Rights, that merely emboldens them to attempt an end run around the remaining nine amendments.  30 rounds, 20 rounds, 10 rounds, one round, they all still kill when in the wrong hands.  What's next, knives?  Stop and Frisk may work for NYC and London; we're neither. Ask the Chinese LEO's how well firearms bans are working out there with respect to protecting their children.  Ask the survivors of the Bath, Michigan massacre how well firearms laws protected them.  Ask the average cop on the beat in England how that's working for them.  We need to fix our society first and return to the day where LEO's were respected and admired for their sacrifices, not feared and loathed like we are today.  We need to enforce our existing tens of thousands of firearms related laws on the books, not continue to add even more ineffective and costly legislation.  Above all else, we need to keep first and foremost in our minds, a mere penstroke seperates LEO's from being a civilian subject to the same myriads of laws.  Slippery slope...  We've crossed the precipice.

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Permalink Reply by Michael Zollars on January 19, 2013 at 10:23am

This is ridiculous.....plain and simple.  For anyone wondering what comes next, here is some food for thought.  I have a friend that lives in Australia.  In the wake of their firearms ban, they now have to register knives.  You may only possess certain knives if they are registered and you are actually hunting or fishing, or enroute to do the same.  The time to act is now.

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Permalink Reply by Don Drennon Gala, Ph.D. on January 20, 2013 at 12:35am

NYS Assemblyman James Tedisco is correct; the New York law gives the people of the State of New York a false sense of security. Regardless of what new laws are passed, the criminals could care less. Criminals will continue to use knives, guns, pipes, etc. to harm others.

An example of the ineffectiveness of these laws can be seen in the 2009 crime statistics comparing Rochester, NY with Chattanooga, TN. Rochester has an ordinance that has prohibited assault rifles and shotguns with handles since mid-1994. During 2009, Rochester had 50 homicides and Chattanooga had 10 homicides. Chattanooga has a little less than 20k less in population. However, it is more dangerous to be in the city limits of Rochester than it is in the City of Chattanooga. "Dad, if the sheep had sharp teeth the wolf would not attack" (S. Bosch, 1984; 10 yrs. old). This 10-year old young boy had better sense than some adults in government, which is quite sad.

 

By the way, 6% of the law enforcement officers killed in 2011 were killed by the perpetrator using the Officer’s own gun. These are well trained LEOs. Criminals are able to get guns from LEOs by force. The law prohibits criminals from resisting and taking a firearm away from LEOs as well. The law didn't help these 6 LEOs. Now, what is this new law suppose to do?

 

In my professional opinion, I cannot see the positive effect of this new law in NYS. The Governor would have done more by (1) requiring those people owning assault weapons and more than 1 other firearm to purchase and use a tall gun vault where the guns had to be stored when not in use or carried on the person.

 

Consider what would have happened if Lanza’s mother had her firearms secured in a vault (without her son having access to same). She would not have been killed by a firearm, although I believe that Lanza would have used a knife at that point.

 

Also, consider the Newtown facts about Lanza. Regardless of his mental illness, he was unable to purchase a firearm at a gun store. A gun store refused to sell him a firearm, and the 14-day waiting period prevented him from getting the firearm. If the gun store owner had contacted the police about the suspicious behavior and request of Lanza, it is possible that history would have been altered (a proactive approach).

 

As such, (2) the Governor of the State of New York should have enacted legislation that requires gun store owners to contact law enforcement when a suspicious situation occurs, such as in the Lanza Newtown case.

 

The 2 suggestions are believed to be more effective in deterring a possible like shooting than outlawing assault weapons and requiring less rounds of ammunition in the magazine. The honest person will adhere to the Governor’s directives, but criminals, by their very nature, will totally ignore this law, as they ignore the present laws of the State of New York. This new law is truly sad, and the Republican Senate should have protected the people of the State of New York from such knee jerk legislation. This law should be repealed.

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