Misfire

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

The New York Sun
NY Sun
NEW YORK SUN CONTRIBUTOR

When the mighty Eliot Spitzer tried to sue gun companies in New York State court to get them to change their business practices, he lost. Now Mayor Bloomberg, supposedly an advocate of tort reform, is going ahead with a similar suit against the gun companies, in federal court. We hope Mr. Bloomberg has as much success in this legal campaign as Mr. Spitzer did.


The language of the Second Amendment is clear, after all. The city emphasizes that it is not seeking money damages from the gun companies. In practice, though, a victory by the city would strengthen the hands of all the plaintiff’s bar that wants to turn the American firearms industry into the next big tobacco and the country into a place where corporate deep pockets, rather than individuals, bear responsibility for everything bad that happens.


The city wants an injunction aimed at preventing manufacturers from selling to dealers that have been indicted or who have a high number of guns used in crimes traced to them. The city wants the court to control the sale of guns at gun shows and to stop the phenomenon of “straw buyers,” who purchase weapons and then resell them illegally.


Similar measures have been put forward as legislation in Congress and defeated. When asked whether it was Congress’ job to regulate businesses, and not the city’s lawyers, the lead city attorney on the case, Eric Proshansky, had a simple answer: “No.” Elaborating, Mr. Proshansky said, “You’ve basically got the old three branches of government, and Congress hasn’t indicated that it’s going to pass any laws to restrict gun sales, so we turn to another branch of government.” That is, the federal courts.


The problem that the city is hoping to sue out of existence is a problem that was created in the first place in part by New York City’s assault on its citizens’ rights under the Second Amendment that Joseph Story called “the palladium of the liberties of a republic.” The director of the New York State Rifle and Pistol Association, Patrick W. Brophy, tells us that the overwhelming majority of the undocumented weapons in New York City are not used for crime, but are instead purchased illegally by otherwise law-abiding citizens who don’t want to deal with the city’s draconian licensing process.


A pistol permit for a home or business costs $340, plus a $99 fingerprinting fee. Obtaining such a permit requires four trips to One Police Plaza, and the permit must be renewed every three years, which requires additional trips. To get a license to carry a gun outside for self-defense (as opposed to target shooting or hunting) one must show need. In a violation of the Second Amendment, applications for such permits are almost always rejected.


The sad fact is that ordinary, law-abiding New Yorkers cannot exercise their basic rights laid out in the Second Amendment. “People don’t want to ask the government for a permission slip, pay $440, and make four trips downtown when the undocumented market can provide what they need for a hell of a lot less. It’s simple economics,” Mr. Brophy said. In short, New Yorkers’ Second Amendment rights are already infringed enough by laws passed by the City Council and the Congress. For the politicians and their lawyers now to turn to the courts and seek additional restrictions is a misfire.

NY Sun
NEW YORK SUN CONTRIBUTOR

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.


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