Tougher penalties to permit more effective gang prosecutions, allowing a prosecutor to ask for 25 to life (previously was just 15 years) for an entire group when a gang is involved in murder.
Using or carrying a firearm during drug trafficking or a violent felony will include a 5 year mandatory minimum sentence if the gun is loaded and a 3½ year mandatory minimum if unloaded. (The Court could impose a lower sentence in drug trafficking cases depending on mitigating factors).
Sharing a gun with an individual who is not authorized to possess a gun and commits a crime will constitute criminal facilitation.
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This evening, Senator Bill Larkin (R-C-I, Cornwall-on-Hudson) issued the following statement:
“I voted against the Governor’s proposal because I firmly believe it is too restrictive on our legal, law abiding gun owners and does not adequately address the issue of illegal weapons and their use during the commission of a crime. Gun violence will not be stopped by restricting lawful, honest gun owners. It is career criminals and their access to illegal weapons that are the main problem facing our cities, towns and villages – not people who support the second amendment.”
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Statement from Assemblyman Kieran Michael Lalor, R-Fishkill:
“Over the past two days Governor Cuomo has not been leading, he has been campaigning. He has pushed his way past any hearings or debate to rush through an unconstitutional bill that won’t keep our schools safe. Why? Because he needs to position himself for a Democrat presidential primary in 2016.”
“In the rush to pass this bill, the governor has delivered a mess to New Yorkers. Magazines which hold up to 10 rounds will be grandfathered in, but they can’t be loaded with more than seven rounds. It is not serious to think that criminals will follow Governor Cuomo’s orders when loading their weapons.”
“Voters want Albany to make our schools safer, but this law will do little for school safety. In fact, school safety has been passed off to a blue ribbon panel meeting sometime in the future. The Governor and the legislature should be discussing school safety initiatives right now, not passing them off to another group. With absurd provisions like this, the law would not have passed had voters been given the chance to review it. Albany’s ‘four men in a room’ knew that, so they rushed the law through to avoid public scrutiny.”
“This political game is disappointing to the many New Yorkers who saw Governor Cuomo spend two years working on bi-partisan solutions like the tax cap and government consolidation. The once moderate governor has taken a play from Mitt Romney’s book, changing his policies like an Etch A Sketch to prepare for 2016. We want to work with the governor to get New York back on track, but it looks like the governor’s focus is on the White House.”
“I am proud to have cast my vote against this law and I will continue to fight for the Second Amendment in Albany.”
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Statement from state Sen. Greg Ball, R-Patterson:
“We needed solid provisions to keep the violently, mentally ill from harming our communities, our kids and our families. That didn’t happen tonight. While much in this bill, as far as stiffer penalties for real criminals and help on the mental health front is good, the last minute push, in the middle of the night without critical public input from sportsmen and taxpayers was outrageous and forced members to vote on a bill they had not read. While I’m glad we won on many fronts, including my permit privacy legislation against the Journal News, I simply cannot support a bill that turns law abiding citizens into criminals by creating an entire new category of illegal firearms out of currently legal rifles and shotguns,” said Senator Greg Ball.
