New York's Bounty for Reporting Illegal Guns
March 21, 2013
This is interesting. I’m not sure what to think. How about you?
A year prior to New York’s new “SAFE” law, they started a program offering $500 rewards to people who report others who have illegal guns. The program is so popular (sarcasm) and so rarely used that some police departments weren’t even aware the program existed until recently asked about it.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/03/21/new-york-state-offers-500-reward-for-reporting-illegal-gun-owners/
Here’s another of those programs that looks good on the surface, but is it really? Where’s the potential for abuse? False reporting, resulting in harassment and potentially depriving people of rights to privacy, 2nd and 4th Amendment protections? We’ve already seen earlier this year, in this very state, that media are willing to “out” lawful gun owners on interactive mapping websites with names and addresses. We’ve already seen even more recently that lawful owners and users of firearms can be harassed through law enforcement and child protective services, threatening their rights to privacy, 2nd and 4th Amendment protections, and threatening to remove a child from his parents because of a photo showing absolutely no unlawful activity or artifacts. These atrocities happen in today’s society.
http://www.lohud.com/interactive/article/20121223/NEWS01/121221011/Map-Where-gun-permits-your-neighborhood
http://foxnewsinsider.com/2013/03/20/police-and-family-services-raid-nj-mans-home-over-photo-of-son-with-rifle/ (includes 2:50 video)
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/03/19/dad-this-picture-of-my-son-holding-a-gun-triggered-a-visit-from-nj-police-family-services/ (includes photo & 1:04:16 video)
So where can it lead? New York’s new “SAFE” law bans certain firearms. Is there a grandfather clause? If someone takes a previously owned and lawful firearm to a range, or even just moves it from their home to their vehicle for transportation, and is seen, what happens when they’re reported? What happens when someone is reported for having a magazine with more than 7 rounds? Note this quote from the article:
“ "There is no such thing as a seven-bullet magazine. That doesn't exist, so you really have no practical option," Cuomo said.”
That’s not entirely true. There are 7-round (and fewer) magazines for certain firearms. They do not exist for others. New York’s solution is ‘you can have a 10-round magazine but you can only put 7 rounds in it’. Really? Here’s a potential report: ‘I saw that he had 8 rounds in his 10-round magazine.’
I wish the article reported on what the result of this program was. How many times has it been used? How much has been paid out to informants? What’s been the total cost of the program including litigation? How many convictions have resulted? For what crimes have those convictions come?
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