QBP RICHARDS ON SUPREME COURT’S DECISION TO OVERTURN NEW YORK STATE GUN LAW

(June 23, 2022 at 10:50am)

QUEENS, NY – Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. stated the following in response to today’s disturbing Supreme Court ruling to overturn longstanding New York State law that limits the distribution of unrestricted firearms licenses to those who are able to demonstrate proper cause and a legally recognized reason to publicly carry a weapon.

“Today’s ruling is equal parts dangerous, delusional and a dereliction of government’s sacred duty to keep its residents safe. For years in states across this country, far-right radicals who fetishize firearms and worship at the altar of weaponry have prioritized the profits of gun manufacturers — and the campaign contributions they make in return — over public safety. With this cult-like obsession with firearms now forced upon New York by the Supreme Court’s conservative majority, we are less safe today than we were yesterday,” said Borough President RICHARDS. “Thankfully, shootings in New York City have declined this year compared to 2021 and my office will continue to work closely with the NYPD and our Crisis Management System to drive shootings down further. But with heightened rates of gun violence post-pandemic and with mass shootings claiming the lives of innocent students, shoppers and others across America with sickening frequency, flooding our streets with even more firearms will lead to even more funerals and families torn apart.

“Here in Queens, we will not accept a world where our sidewalks and subways are teeming with triggers ready to be pulled,” Borough President RICHARDS added. “We’re grateful for the package of gun violence prevention measures signed into law earlier this month. But with this Supreme Court decision in hand, the state Legislature must immediately reconvene and pass legislation to further prevent guns from reaching our young people and to keep vulnerable, high-trafficked locations free of firearms. It’s time to act before any more lives are lost.”

Follow the Office of the Queens Borough President via @QnsBPRichards on Twitter and @QueensBPRichards on Facebook and Instagram

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