Should Gun Rights be Reciprocal Among States? Tenn. Women Arrested in NYC for Carrying Legal Gun

REASON ^ | 12/30/2011 | Nick Gillespie

[SeekAndFind]

The New York Post (founded by Alexander Hamilton, but don't hold that against the current version) reports on the strange case of Meredith Graves, a 39-year-old medical student and nurse from Tennessee who was arrested for illegally carrying - and voluntarily surrendering - a gun at Manhattan's 9/11 Memorial. Graves is licensed to carry in Tennessee and was in New York for a job interview, reports the Post, when she and her husband visited the memorial. Upon seeing a sign saying no weapons allowed, says the Post, she realized she was carrying a .32 caliber pistol and inquired about how to declare it:

When she got to that section, she asked another cop, “We have this gun — can we check it in here? We [my husband and I] are not law-enforcement.”

That’s when she was arrested.

Graves, who has a full legal carry permit in Tennessee, was locked up on a weapons-possession charge and held on $2,000 bond that she posted yesterday. She is due in court on March 19.

She’ll soon find out exactly how serious New York City is about illegal guns. The Manhattan DA’s Office is pursuing a conviction on felony gun possession — carrying a minimum sentence of 3 1/2 years....

The Post quotes her mother making the case that gun rights should not be subject to state infringements:

“You’d think states would reciprocate with the Second Amendment. She has a license to carry in Tennessee,” said her mother-in-law, who lives in Manchester, NJ.

Bonus anonymous Volunteer State voice whose opinion of New York probably couldn't have gotten any lower anyhow:

“Everyone down there carries, and she just forgot,” said the woman, who would not give her name. “She was being honest, and this is the treatment they give innocent people.”

The Post notes that Mayor Mike Bloomberg has made a huge push against illegal guns in the city.

Whole story here.

So what do you think, kind readers? While I think most reasonable people would agree that prosecuting such a case is a monumental waste of law enforcement resources, what about the case for reciprocity in gun laws? Assuming New York's and the city's laws pass constitutional muster, isn't this just one more case of respecting local differences (ironically, that sort of federalist-localist claim is more typically associated with the South than New Yawk City)?

If every place in America is forced to be just like every other place when it comes all laws and regulation and taxes and collective bargaining and trans fat and this and that (including gay marriage, come to think of it), isn't that supposed to be a bad thing? Or should the standard for gun rights and many other things (free speech, religious liberty, not having to quarter soldiers, etc.) ultimately be set at the highest level possible? What do you think is the way to decide which rights get special protection and which ones don't?

[Vaquero]

That being said, maybe this could be the first step in some lawsuits to destroy NYC’s gun laws.

it is not going to happen in NY City...not in the foreseeable future (I have lived in the state all 62 years)...I grew up there...moved to the Burbs which are marginally better...

....I have a NYS concealed carry permit when I travel through NY city, I am suppose to unload, separate guns from ammo in separate locked containers and 10 minutes later when I make it through to the northern burbs I may retrieve my arm and reload and carry it again...

I wont say whether or not I actually obey the rule just to drive through the short distance or not....suffice it to say that they can make your life a living hell if caught.

the City of NY is not a believer in the Constitution and will NOT change because of federal law. they will tie it up in local courts FOREVER. and will use the States Rights that they say they hate to do just what they chose. just as Chicago and DC have not really listened to the Supremes...they nod their heads and keep on doing whatever they feel like doing..

[cowboyway]

So, should the woman be set free? Or should she be put in jail for 3 1/2 years? That is what concerns me....

She should have never been arrested. But I guess thats what happens when you travel behind the Iron Curtain.

[Road Glide]

Everything you wrote in the reply above is true.

Even NY state residents with concealed carry permits can’t carry in NYC.

The lady from Tennessee should have known better.

I hope she has a good lawyer.

Some Freepers from other states will disagree, but NYC is very much “a different country, a different world” from where they reside....

[ConradofMontferrat]

This going to start real problem.

IF SHE WENT TO NYC VIA THE JERSEY TURNPIKE, BET YOUR BUTT THAT NJ’S DUDDLEY DOORIGHTS ARE LOOKING INTO FILING CHARGES AGAINST HER TOO.

After she does her 3 in NY, she’ll start her 5 in NJ.

Just sayin....

[susannah59]

In absolute terms the rights granted to US citizens supersede those of New York and it should be legal. Having said that, she should have known better.

I agree completely. I believe I should have the right to carry and defend myself in any state in the Union.

However, we both know that realistically and unfortunately that isn't the way it actually works. If I want to stay out of legal trouble, therefore, I have the responsibility to know what the laws are wherever I'm going. That information is readily available on the internet; anyone traveling would do well to access it and become familiar before traveling.

[PilotDave]

She should be free. She will do time.

[Sooth2222]

"In absolute terms the rights granted to US citizens supersede those of New York and it should be legal."

I agree with "should" but about 1/3 of the US population lives in the indigo-blue states that restrict firearm ownership to a greater or lesser degree. The SC has ruled that states can restrict firearm ownership.

One big reason that the SC ruled District of Columbia v. Heller is that DC is not a state.

Still, it's hard to believe that CCW course in Tennessee wouldn't have mentioned anything about laws in other states. It was pretty dumb to bring a pistol into NYC and pretty naive to think that cops are your friends. She has my sympathy but she should have thought about it for a second or two.

I don't think NYC's Sullivan law is going to change unless NYC residents want it to change, and they haven't wanted it to change for the last 100 years.

[SeekAndFind]

There already are legislators in NYC who are agitating for clemency. Long Time NYC Councilman Peter Vallone comes to mind.

[SeekAndFind]

The State of Tennessee better help this law abiding citizen out. I don’t see any justice in this at all.

[Molon Labbie]

Not all cops are NYC cops.

I would have just gave her a quote from the Gandalf the Grey school of firearms: “Keep it safe, keep it secret.”

[KrisKrinkle]

“Who here has ever been out and suddenly “realized” that he was carrying a sidearm?”

It was a .32. There are some pretty lightweight .32’s on the market. She likely had it in a purse with a bunch of other stuff. They make purses with holster compartments that carry a gun properly. The weight of a light .32 would not be noticeable. So, “out of sight, out of mind” till something reminds you of it...like a mugger or a sign.

[Citizen Tom Paine]

Gun permits sould be like Drivers licenses. They should have retroprocity between states.

[KrisKrinkle]

The only rights mentioned in the Constitution are INALIENABLE rights!

The "...right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed..." is not an inalienable right.

“Shall not be infringed” means exactly what it sounds like!

Granted, but to understand that meaning you have to understand the meaning of "the right of the people to keep and bear Arms".

[reaganaut]

This woman was stupid. If you carry, you need to know the gun laws of the places you go. I make a booklet every year for my mother that summarizes the laws in the states she travels with her gun.

I have a CCW, and I travel a lot (with my mother). I would love to see reciprocity for all 50 states. As it is now, I have to adjust my travel itinerary to gun friendly states and that can be a bother. Hopefully this year I will get my FL out of state CCW which will add a few more states to the 28 my state reciprocates. Yes, I realize this is better than most, but it isn’t enough.

[GregNH]

The problem is that we have allowed the individual states to infringe on our 2nd amendment right. A drivers license is not right defined in the Constitution and is freely regulated by the several states. TENN does not have to recognize a NY drivers license.

No state, that I am aware of yet, denies my 1st amendment right or any other numerated right in the Constitution but the 2nd. Where is equal protection under the law your honor?

[ntnychik]

New York drivers are already treated like that.
Bloomberg’s NYC regulations aren’t the same as Upstate, and nearly all of this large state is Upstate.

[GregNH]

I would love to see this one at SCOTUS.

[Gaffer]

It wasn’t legal in NYC, regardless of whether their law is just or not. She should, as a holder, ensure that wherever she takes the weapon, she is legal in doing so. Sorry, I feel sympathy for her, but this is her fault.

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

I believe I should have the right to carry and defend myself in any state in the Union.

I believe I have the right to carry and defend myself anywhere on the planet.

[Logical me]

When Newt is President he should issue an Executive Order that all States will honor the 2nd and all States will honor legally issued permits from any State.