Unacceptable: New York City’s Gun Laws
New York City, is home to over eight million people, not to mention one of the most diverse cities in America (and one of the most visited).
But all is not well in the Big Apple, and it’s not just Bill de Blasio being elected mayor. As indicated by the title of this article, it is New York City’s having some of the strictest guns laws in the country. They consist of the following: a permit to purchase a firearm, registration of firearms, a license to own a firearm, and a permit to carry a firearm.
Getting these permits and licenses is no easy task. In fact, it involves a lengthy, rigorous process (carried out by the New York City Police Department) that can most likely results in rejection. First, there’s the application, and if one does not pay close attention, the application can be rejected. One particular example would be a question on the application asking if the applicant has a government-issued license. Many people have answered no, forgetting that a driver’s license falls into this category. As a result, their application is denied. Next, there are the fees, consisting of a $170 license fee and a $74 fingerprinting fee. Naturally, these fees are nonrefundable.
Then the applicant has to read and memorize a twenty-page booklet on responsibility for gun owners, as well as a four-page pamphlet on the city’s laws regarding the use of deadly use. The applicant then is interviewed by a police officer about these laws. Any slip-up (or if the officer is not satisfied) can result in automatic rejection. This interview is more like an oral exam, or perhaps a grilling (depending on the officer who conducts it). In fact, I wonder if the officers who conducts the interview show any professionalism, or even try to deliberately trip up the applicant (perhaps these officers take a dim view of private citizens’ owning firearms, or maybe they are just following orders).
During this excruciating process, the applicants are constantly told “don’t call us- we’ll call you.” But as it turns out, they hardly call. The NYPD is supposed to act on an application within six months, and they usually reject the application (after making the applicant wait).
So why does the NYPD take its own sweet time processing an application? To discourage would-be gun owners? And what happens if someone does call to inquire about their application? Does that result in automatic rejection? Of course, if someone does try to call, there really is no number available. Most likely, they will be given the runaround.
So why do the people of New York City put up with this nonsense? It’s not because of the crime rate’s dramatic decrease, because that was the result of the police actually cracking down on crime (instead of the strict gun laws). Is it because most people in New York City are Democrats? Or maybe no one is brave enough to sue the city over their Second Amendment rights’ being violated (as was the case in Washington, D.C. and Chicago)?
Perhaps someone will take a stand. Only time will tell.
Image: Courtesy of: http://www.flickr.com/photos/e53/843487828/