Cuomo Favors Easing New York’s Newly Passed Gun Law

[Eugene]

Source: New York Times

Cuomo Favors Easing New York's Newly Passed Gun Law

By THOMAS KAPLAN and DANNY HAKIM
Published: March 20, 2013

ALBANY — In the wake of the elementary school massacre in Newtown, Conn., Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo of New York pushed through the State Legislature gun control measures that included not only a tougher assault weapons ban but also a tighter restriction on the maximum legal capacity of gun magazines.

But after weeks of criticism from gun owners, Mr. Cuomo said on Wednesday that he would seek to ease the restriction, which he said had proved unworkable even before it was scheduled to take effect on April 15.

The gun-control law, approved in January, banned the sale of magazines that hold more than seven rounds of ammunition. But, Mr. Cuomo said Wednesday, seven-round magazines are not widely manufactured. And, although the new gun law provided an exemption for the use of 10-round magazines at firing ranges and competitions, it did not provide a legal way for gun owners to purchase such magazines.

As a result, he said, he and legislative leaders were negotiating language that would continue to allow the sale of magazines holding up to 10 rounds, but still forbid New Yorkers from loading more than 7 rounds into those magazines.

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Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/21/nyregion/cuomo-seeks-to-ease-a-newly-passed-gun-restriction.html

[ProgressiveProfessor]

1. There has been a pretty serious backlash by the counties outside of NYC on this

Some good maps were posted yesterday on it.

[Dawson Leery]

2. Any links to those maps?

[ProgressiveProfessor]

4. Here is one, I think there was at least one more thread

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1172115489

[kudzu22]

3. Are they going to have cops at the shooting ranges counting rounds?

How on earth would you ever catch someone with 8 rounds in a 10 round magazine unless he were using it? How about if you load 8 and then chamber the top one? Felony charge? Are you supposed to load 7, chamber one, and then top off the mag to 7 again?

NY SAFE is a whole lot of stupid.

[bluedigger]

5. His job is to enforce the laws of NY, not write them.

He had his chance to weigh in.

[Eleanors38]

6. "...proved unworkable." Now, it'll work by limiting 7 rounds in 10 rd clips.

Workable.

[slackmaster]

12. It's OK as long as three of the rounds are blanks

You can mix them up so someone who is attacking you won't know whether the next round will deliver a bullet or just a loud bang.

[spin]

7. What's the punishment for miscounting and putting eight rounds in your magazine? ...

Why would a person suffering from a severe mental problem decide to put only seven rounds in his magazine before he launched a massacre. Would he tell himself that he might get into a lot of trouble because he had too many rounds in his magazine and abide by the law?

Would a criminal with a long record of violent crime who could not legally own a firearm follow this law to the letter when he invaded a home in which he might encounter an armed homeowner. If he had ten rounds in his magazine or an illegal high capacity magazine, would this give him a significant advantage over the honest home owner who had only seven?

The problem is not that honest, sane and responsible gun owners have too many rounds in their magazines.

[gejohnston]

8. another question to ask is

did they get around to putting in an LE exemption? Imagine NYPD armorers getting pins or 10 round magazines? Open ranks inspections for each shift to make sure they have only seven rounds?

[spin]

9. Considering how well New York City cops shoot ...

it might be a good idea to limit the amount of rounds in their magazines to protect innocent citizens.

[Jenoch]

10. What am I missing?

I remember reading shortly after this law passed that 10 round magazines would be legal but only with up to 7 rounds loaded into them. I'm positive I read that somewhere weeks ago. By the way, what about .22 caliber revolvers that hold nine rounds? I guess it's about semi-auto guns even though a double-action revolver works just as fast.

By the way, governor, there are all kinds of 7-round magazines out there for .45 ACP handguns.

[Straw Man]

11. Seven vs. ten.

I remember reading shortly after this law passed that 10 round magazines would be legal but only with up to 7 rounds loaded into them. I'm positive I read that somewhere weeks ago.

That has always been the case with this law. However, as of April 15th, 2013, 10-round magazines were scheduled to become illegal to buy, sell, or transfer. There has been a mad scramble to buy them before that date, since for many handguns there are no magazines under 10 rounds on the market. The new amendment would allow 10-round magazines to still be bought and sold, since they are still allowed for range and competition use under the new law.

By the way, what about .22 caliber revolvers that hold nine rounds? I guess it's about semi-auto guns even though a double-action revolver works just as fast.

It's about all magazines or "feeding devices," regardless of action type of the gun they're used in and regardless of whether they are fixed or detachable. Revolvers too can only be loaded with seven. It gets stranger: semi-autos can still be loaded 7+1 (just as 10+1 was allowed under the old law), but the State Police FAQ is advising people with 8 or 9-shot revolvers to only load seven. Apparently, they don't recognize the concept of a "chambered round" with a revolver.

[kudzu22]

13. Is a revolver cylinder really a "feeding device"

I would think not. The rounds don't get fed into the chamber, they're already in a chamber. Unless they mean your hand is a feeding device that feeds the cylinder. Let's hope they don't figure that one out.

[iiibbb]

14. Reality doesn't matter... the perception of an ill-informed arresting officer is what matters.

This is why I got a CCW permit where I lived before, because the CCW law preempted local ordinance - one set of rules.

[Straw Man]

15. Not in my opinion.

Is a revolver cylinder really a "feeding device"

I think not. But I wasn't consulted when they wrote the law. It has more holes in it than Swiss cheese.