Posted on 12/07/2012 1:20:25 PM PST by neverdem
| www.commonsensepolitics.org |
As it currently stands, the Second Amendment guarantees U.S. citizens the right to own firearms. But each state is permitted to place its own restrictions on the types of firearms -- and the manner in which they're possessed -- that people are allowed to own.
A bill making its way through Congress would grant "reciprocity" for gun owners in states where they don't actually live. In other words, if you can carry a concealed handgun under Ohio law, an Ohio resident can carry a concealed weapon in New York -- regardless of New York's gun laws.
The bill is designed to keep gun owners from getting arrested in other states where gun laws might be different than they are in the state in which they live. But New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman ain't havin' it.
Schneiderman is leading a coalition of attorneys general who oppose "The National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act" and "The Respecting States Rights and Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act," which he says "would force states like New York, and the other co-signing states, to abandon their own gun laws by allowing out-of-state visitors to carry concealed firearms based on their home state's less safe laws, rather than those of the state they are entering."
In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, the attorneys general expressed their concern that "the bill would restrict their states' ability to control who may and may not carry a concealed weapon within their borders, undermine the ability of police to verify the validity of gun permits, and allow gun traffickers to more easily bring illegal guns into their respective states.
"These two bills would force states to recognize concealed carry permits issued by any other states, even those with poor oversight and weaker permitting standards," the attorneys general wrote. "These bills would create a lowest common denominator approach to public safety that would endanger police and make it more difficult to prosecute gun traffickers."
Scheniderman says, that in 2011, about 68 percent of guns recovered in connection with crimes committed in New York State originally came from outside the state. That said, all of those guns found their way to New York without the help of a reciprocity law.
See the attorneys general's letter below.
The Honorable Harry Reid The Honorable Mitch McConnell
U.S. Senate Majority Leader U.S. Senate Republican Leader
522 Hart Senate Office Building 317 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510 Washington, D.C. 20510
RE: Attorney General Opposition To S. 2188, "The National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act" (Begich-Manchin) and S. 2213, "The Respecting States Rights and Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act" (Thune-Vitter)
Dear Majority Leader Reid and Republican Leader McConnell:
We write to respectfully urge you and your caucuses to oppose S. 2188, "The National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act" and S. 2213, "The Respecting States Rights and Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act." These two bills would force states to recognize concealed carry permits issued by any other states, even those with poor oversight and weaker permitting standards. These bills would create a lowest common denominator approach to public safety that would endanger police and make it more difficult to prosecute gun traffickers.
S. 2188 and S. 2213 trample on states' rights by overriding our states' legislative and regulatory authority to determine who can - and who cannot - carry hidden and loaded guns in public. For example, many states have established standards that go beyond federal law in order to keep concealed weapons out of the hands of violent misdemeanants, alcohol abusers, teenagers, and people who have not completed basic safety training. S. 2188 and S. 2213 would gut this framework, and impose the weakest state permitting and verification standards on all other states.
Under current law, states are free to enter into, refuse, or revoke concealed carry reciprocity agreements with other states. These agreements are often contingent on states having comparable permitting standards. For example, authorities in Nevada and New Mexico made the decision to stop recognizing carry permits issued by Utah, which does not require live-fire instruction as part of its training requirements. Nevada has also ended reciprocity with Florida, which only requires individuals to renew their permits every seven years. States would lose this discretion under forced reciprocity.
As Attorneys General, we are most troubled by the threat to public safety posed by local law enforcement's inability to promptly verify out-of-state permits. Contrary to claims by proponents of national concealed carry reciprocity legislation, varying state standards make it nearly impossible for our law enforcement agencies to quickly determine if a carry permit from another state is valid. This further jeopardizes the safety of police and the public. In addition, there is no comprehensive national database or inquiry system that alerts law enforcement officers when a concealed carry permit is counterfeit, expired, or has recently been revoked.
In fact, some states also fail to adequately track their own permit issuances and revocations. The Georgia Bureau of Investigations has confirmed it cannot determine when a state permit-holder breaks the law; recently enacted Wisconsin law prohibits law enforcement from accessing permitting information during traffic stops or for purposes of investigating potential criminal activity; and Florida issued permits to more than 1,400 people who previously pleaded guilty or no contest to felonies, 216 people with outstanding warrants, 128 people with active domestic violence injunctions, and six registered sex offenders.
The police officers in our states are already putting their lives on the line when they stop potentially dangerous individuals on the street. Forcing these officers to conduct traffic stops and other police activity with no ability to authenticate every other state's carry permits would pose an extraordinary and unnecessary risk.
Forced reciprocity is opposed by national organizations including: the International Association of Chiefs of Police; the Major Cities Chiefs Association, representing the police chiefs of 62 major U.S. cities; the National Network to End Domestic Violence, representing 56 state and territorial domestic violence coalitions; the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys; as well as various state law enforcement associations and law enforcement leaders. Forced reciprocity is also opposed by Mayors Against Illegal Guns, a bipartisan coalition of more than 650 mayors who collectively represent 54 million Americans.
We urge you to stand up for America's law enforcement community and oppose S. 2188 and S. 2213.
Sincerely,
Eric T. Schneiderman
New York Attorney General
Kamala D. Harris
California Attorney General
George Jepsen
Connecticut Attorney General
David M. Louie
Hawaii Attorney General
Lisa Madigan
Illinois Attorney General
Douglas F. Gansler
Maryland Attorney General
Martha M. Coakley
Massachusetts Attorney General
Catherine Cortez Masto
Nevada Attorney General
Ellen Rosenblum
Oregon Attorney General
Kathleen Kane
Pennsylvania Attorney General-Elect
We were talking the other day about reciprocity....My beef is with driver’s licenses. One license obtained where you live. When it’s time to renew, if you have moved, you renew it there. Of course the “tax scam” is plates and registering the vehicle every two years (in my State).
Only two of them were surprising.
Eric Schneiderman is a first class d***head. As New Yorkers, we deal with this anti-Constitution AG on a daily basis.
I’m sorry the rest of you have to be subjected to his unparalleled stupidity on a matter such as this.
Can't allow the plebs a taste of freedom. That would spoil everything. BTT.
Don’t know why the NY AG is making such a big stink. There’s a snowball’s chance in Heck Obama would ever sign such a thing.
So we should pass a law here in Colorado that doesn’t recognize New York drivers licenses.
I believe that this list of gun-concerned Attorneys General also constitutes a list of the states with most felony gun violence. Also the most left laying. (they leaned so far they fell over)
by allowing out-of-state visitors to carry concealed firearms based on their home state’s less safe laws, rather than those of the state they are entering.”
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
For starters, I would really like to see states like VA tell NY, MD, etc “Why do you expect US to honor your same sex marriages when you will not honor our right to carry.
Even got a slogan (everything needs a slogan or rhyme these days)
“YOU RECOGNIZE OUR RIGHT TO CARRY,
WE WILL RECOGNIZE YOUR RIGHT TO MARRY”.
So will these same AGs allow "states rights" restrictions on women voting, slavery, cruel and unusual punishment, self-incrimination, or things not even in the Constitution like gay marriage or abortion?
Of course not, there's the catch-all "equal protection" argument!
It's only your 2nd Amendement Right that's... not really a "right" but... more like guidelines... (says Capn' Barbosa)
For years when people frist started to get drivers lic. They were only good in one state.
Full reciprocity took years to come about same with vehicle registration.
Most people are not aware of that fact because it was some time ago.
Truthfully I am apprehensive about forced reciprocity, because I fear it opening up a can of worms.
There are a very large number of reciprocity agreements between the states over all sorts of things—with no federal hand in any of it. But this is not to say that the federals would not love to horn in to these agreements if they could.
Right now they do horn in if there is great disagreements, such as over water in the western states. And once the feds decide something, good or bad, the states are stuck with it.
I can almost guarantee that if federal gun reciprocity is passed, the very next efforts will be to make “homosexual marriage”, “abortion rights”, “hate crimes laws”, and other such things as binding federal reciprocity agreements.
And lord knows what all else. So, at least for the time being, it is less harmful to just know that you cannot transport guns through some parts of the US, where the constitution means little compared to the corruption of government.
“You know the BS is getting thick when the left invokes states’ rights.”
No kidding.
Hmmmm. One of them isn't even an AG yet.
“Only 10 AGs signed that letter. Only two of them were surprising.”
I assume you are talking about Nevada and Oregon. Their respective AGs are very liberal women, so their inclusion is actually not at all surprising.
PA is a state with many firearm owners, who often find themselves in trouble in NY and NJ.
Shocked and pleased that Chiesa did not sign.
My thoughts exactly.
What a metric load of horse hockey.
Why then can't each state place its own restrictions on the 1st Amendment? The 4th? The 6th? 7th? 8th?
The truth is, the Constitution is just a convenient fiction. It is no longer operative. The Left has control, and is just deciding its moment to fully seize power, and how many deaths they are willing to entertain to get it.
State’s rights to repress rights. They’re consistent.
Now, that would be a problem, wouldn't it.
Imagine if our Founders had been so foolish as to provide a common expectation like, for example, "the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed". That would really be a problem.
The anti-gunners' heads are going to explode unless Obama is able to change the present make-up of the Supreme Court.
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