NY SAFE Act

Genesee County reportedly is on board with 13 other Western New York counties, including Erie and Monroe, whose law enforcement officials state that they will not enforce the NY SAFE Act’s seven-round capacity limit.

In a Feb. 7 article on the website of Second Amendment advocate 2AWNY, Genesee County District Attorney Lawrence Friedman is quoted as saying that it isn’t a priority for his office to prosecute someone over the number of bullets loaded into his or her firearm’s magazine.

“I can’t say that we will ‘be halting enforcement of the SAFE Act seven-round limit in Genesee County’ because there hasn’t been any such enforcement,” Friedman said. “No such arrests have been made and so there have not been any such cases for us to prosecute.”

He added that is his understanding that “there will not be any such arrests in this County in the future but, if there were, we would not prosecute such charges.”

Recent comments from Genesee County Sheriff William Sheron line up with Friedman’s assessment.

William Fox, chair of the Genesee County chapter of SCOPE (Shooters Committee on Political Education), applauded the county’s law enforcement stance.

 “The judge (Federal Court Justice William Skretny) ruled that they couldn’t do that, and he’s right – it should be that way,” Fox said. “Constitutional rights don’t come with limitations.”

Fox added that three Genesee County towns – Bethany, Batavia and Le Roy -- have joined Genesee County in passing resolutions against the SAFE Act and that he expects more.

Passed in 2013, the SAFE (Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement) Act is a package of more restrictive gun control measures, including the broadening of assault-style weapons, high-capacity magazine provision and universal background checks.

Judge Skretny, in his ruling less than a year later, wrote that the “seven-round limit is largely an arbitrary restriction that impermissibly infringes on the rights guaranteed by the Second Amendment. This Court therefore strikes down that portion of the Act.”

On Tuesday, Congressman Chris Collins reintroduced the Second Amendment Guarantee Act (SAGA) which, if passed, would negate most of the language in the SAFE Act.

Fox acknowledged that it will be tough for that to pass, but he’s vowing to press on.

“It will be a long road at the federal level but, then again, we have a long way to go here,” he said, stating that the current “red flag” legislation being proposed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo is another case of government overstepping its bounds.

“There is no due process with any of these red flag measures,” he said. “They will be able to confiscate firearms without (determining) just cause.”

The bill would restrict gun possession for those deemed to be a danger to themselves or others. Other proposed bills call for a ban on bump stocks (which allow semi-automatic weapons to mimic automatic fire) and an extension of the waiting period to buy a firearm from three days to 10.

Both bills are expected to pass due to Democratic majorities in both the state Assembly and Senate.

In a related development, Fox said that SCOPE will be coordinating a "Life, Liberty and Freedom" public rally at 10 a.m. Feb. 16 at the Batavia City Centre that will focus on unconstituional laws, attacks on the Bill of Rights, high taxes, abortion demand, illegal immigaration, attacks on faith and attacks on the free press.

(Submitted photo of Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) [right] with New York State Rifle and Pistol Association President Tom King at today’s press conference in Albany.)

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) today (March 1) joined his colleagues in Albany for a press conference to call for a repeal of provisions of the infamous NY SAFE Act in Upstate New York and on Long Island. Legislation was introduced, which Hawley sponsors, which would limit the gun control measure to the counties of Kings, Queens, Bronx, New York and Richmond.

“It is long beyond time for the unconstitutional SAFE Act to be repealed in Upstate New York,” Hawley said. “Setting aside the facts that this bill was passed secretively in the middle of the night and is in direct violation of the Second Amendment, upstate families and businesses are less safe because of this law.

"Unlike in New York City where police are readily available, upstate citizens deserve to be able to protect their families in the event of an intruder, especially in rural areas where law enforcement may be many miles away.”

Hawley’s ‘Two New York’s’ bill was mentioned prominently during the press conference as an example of how different areas of the state can be carved out for various policy implementations. Hawley, a longtime supporter of the Second Amendment, hunters, sportsmen and local S.C.O.P.E. chapters, was one of the first to come out against the SAFE Act, which was rushed through the Legislature in the middle of the night with little to no public or stakeholder input.

“There has long existed a cultural difference between New York City and Upstate that has dictated policy,” Hawley said. “If Downstate special interests can carve out special zones for policy initiatives like ride-sharing, the minimum wage, the property-tax cap and local government assistance and include them in budget bills, then there is no reason Upstate residents should have to abide by these laws that were specifically pushed by New York City politicians.

"I am calling on Assembly and Senate leadership to include our bill as part of budget negotiations and eliminate upstate New York from the SAFE-Act’s unlawful regulations.”

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) today called for the full repeal of the NY SAFE Act on the heels of new public safety data showing 81 percent of violations occurred in New York City, over five times more than in the rest of the state. Hawley called for his legislation, A.2651, to be brought to the floor for a vote following the release of this new data.

“As many of us said when we were getting force-fed this atrocious piece of legislation, this is an unconstitutional measure that will have little impact on curbing gun violence,” Hawley said. “The numbers are indisputable.

"The SAFE Act is little more than political pandering to liberal advocates who wanted to punish law-abiding Upstate firearm owners for a Downstate problem. I sponsor multiple bills, including A.3350, that would repeal the SAFE Act and I will continue to fight for full repeal of this ill-conceived law.”

Furthermore, Hawley is pushing for a floor vote on his “Two New Yorks” legislation, which would allow for a ballot referendum asking voters whether they support the division of New York into two separate states.

“The Two New Yorks legislation, A.4167, has been one of the cornerstones of my platform for many years,” Hawley said. “If passed, it would provide for a non-binding referendum gauging public support for the division of New York into two separate states. Unfortunately, Downstate politicians continue to block my bill from coming to the floor because they are fearful of the results.

"We should never sacrifice transparency and the public’s role in government to accumulate power and wealth. This is the time to vote on Two New Yorks, after seeing how Upstate values are continually being stifled in exchange for New York City values, and that is dangerous.”