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Old December 16, 2011, 10:07 AM   #1
MTT TL
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NY Gun Laws may be back in Court - Meckler

The leader of the Tea Party was arrested at LaGuardia with a unloaded Glock 27 locked in a case that he presented at check in. Handguns are illegal without a lic in NY of course.

It is unclear if this would be covered under FOPA as he was not in a vehicle or what his point of origin was at this time.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/12/1...un-at-airport/

Meckler is a big supporter of 2A and an attorney. I expect a court fight on this one that could go on for years (unless maybe they offer him a light misdemeanor plea/charge).
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Old December 16, 2011, 10:37 AM   #2
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This could be the beginning of a big constitutional rights case. I doubt very much that he did not expect to be arrested, he's a lawyer, and probably knew exactly what would happen. Now he will be in a position to challenge NY's unconstitutional gun laws with appeals after conviction.
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Old December 16, 2011, 11:46 AM   #3
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This could be the beginning of a big constitutional rights case. I doubt very much that he did not expect to be arrested, he's a lawyer, and probably knew exactly what would happen. Now he will be in a position to challenge NY's unconstitutional gun laws with appeals after conviction.
I am thinking along the same lines.
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Old December 16, 2011, 12:30 PM   #4
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Hopefully this was well-planned and executed. If he in fact was on a direct journey in accordance with the FOPA this will get more interesting as it develops.
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Old December 16, 2011, 12:30 PM   #5
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Interesting. I had heard he was arrested for something but I didn't see any details. I very much hope he originated his trip in Connecticut so they can't whack him with "FOPA doesn't apply because you aren't allowed to possess a handgun in NY." Either that or that he CAN legally possess it in NY.

God bless him. If he set this up intentionally, he has deeper pockets and bigger cajones than I do.
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Old December 16, 2011, 12:39 PM   #6
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Originally Posted by MTT TL
The leader of the Tea Party
It would be more accurate to say that Mr. Meckler is the leader of a Tea Party splinter group, since the Tea Party movement has no central leadership.

I would have to agree that this is likely the prelude to a legal challenge to NY's law.
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Old December 16, 2011, 12:46 PM   #7
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I stand corrected.

He is the "National Chairman" of the "Tea Party Patriots"; a splinter group of the Tea Party. I don't track much politics and did not even know there was such as thing. I wish him luck anyway however.

This issue is something I have wondered about.

NY is the bottle neck to the NE so any improvement there would help a bit.
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Old December 16, 2011, 12:54 PM   #8
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Every article states a glock 27 and 9mm ammo... Isn't the glock 27 a .40?
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Old December 16, 2011, 01:06 PM   #9
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Every article states a glock 27 and 9mm ammo... Isn't the glock 27 a .40?
In original configuration it is. Could be lots of things later though. All it requires is a barrel and mag swap.

There is no telling though. The press report could be wrong or the ammo could have been for another gun.
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Old December 16, 2011, 02:27 PM   #10
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Tea party patriots co-founder arrested on gun charges at nyc airport

The NYC airport claims another uniformed gun enthusiest. Federal law allows the trasnport of guns in proper containers through all 50 states, but that does not cover a stop over. The man in question stayed in NYC for two days and then went back to the airport. Likely he will have the book thrown at him and told, ignorance of the law is not excuse.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/tea-...ardia-airport/
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Old December 16, 2011, 02:55 PM   #11
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Seems like some guy who thought his California permit would work in New York. He should have checked this out beforehand and hired local security if he felt threatened. I know there have been situations where people have gotten into trouble upon returning to the airport after flight delays forced overnight stays. However, this just sounds like a guy who didn’t do his homework.
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Old December 16, 2011, 03:00 PM   #12
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I'll bet a shiny new .44 mag cartridge,,,

That he did this on purpose,,,
In order to later be able to challenge the law with an appeal.

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Old December 16, 2011, 03:13 PM   #13
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Originally Posted by aarondhgraham
...That he did this on purpose,,,
In order to later be able to challenge the law with an appeal.
Me too.
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Old December 16, 2011, 03:22 PM   #14
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Supreme Court here we come, between FOPA and:

Article. IV.

Section. 1.

Full Faith and Credit shall be given in each State to the public Acts, Records, and judicial Proceedings of every other State. And the Congress may by general Laws prescribe the Manner in which such Acts, Records and Proceedings shall be proved, and the Effect thereof.

Booperburger and his sting operations in various states may come to a screeching halt as the bright light of a very unfavorable spotlight is shined on the unsavory 2nd amendment policies of his lovely city. That doesn't even count MAIG and its rogues gallery of mayors convicted of every crime from drunk driving to fraud to racketeering to tax evasion to sexual misconduct. They all have one thing in common, they don't like guns in the hands of citizens.
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Old December 16, 2011, 03:25 PM   #15
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Merged duplicate threads.
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Old December 16, 2011, 03:30 PM   #16
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If this man did this on purpose, he is really taking a chance with the NYC court system and perhaps misguided belief in the system on appeal. If that is the appearance to the NYC court, they will throw the book at him. Not a smart thing to do for a lawyer or anyone else. I seriously doubt he did it on purpose, just too much for a professional person to lose starting with loss of his right to practice law if convicted. Oh well, one less lawyer won't hurt the country!! LOL
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Old December 16, 2011, 03:46 PM   #17
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Not a smart thing to do for a lawyer or anyone else.
So we should be fearful of what our Gubmint might do?

"When the People fear their Government, there is Tyranny."

Quote:
Oh well, one less lawyer won't hurt the country!!
"First they came for the Communists, but I was not a Communist so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Socialists and the Trade Unionists, but I was neither, so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Jews, but I was not a Jew so I did not speak out. And when they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me.” -Martin Neimoller
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Old December 16, 2011, 03:53 PM   #18
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Today, 12:46 PM #18
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Quote:
Quote:
Not a smart thing to do for a lawyer or anyone else.
So we should be fearful of what our Gubmint might do?
"When the People fear their Government, there is Tyranny."

Quote:
Quote:
Oh well, one less lawyer won't hurt the country!!
"First they came for the Communists, but I was not a Communist so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Socialists and the Trade Unionists, but I was neither, so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Jews, but I was not a Jew so I did not speak out. And when they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me.” -Martin Neimoller
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Dear Jimbo, LOL means laughing out loud. That implies a joke my friend. Plenty of folks have spoken out against this travesty including myself. If you are going to quote, please don't take it out of the context of what was intended. LOL intended the statement to be part of a joke. You left that out.

On the other hand, if the NYC court believes that this is in part a publicity stunt, then they will throw the book at him. I seriously doubt that this man with all that he could lose in this case will be anything but humble and pleading for mercy before the courts because of his ignorance. However, as an officer of the court, he will likely find no mercy since he has a higher level of knowledge than the average hill billy with a gun.

His only hope is to ask for a change of venue, such as Northern Idaho for instance. (LOL, Joke alert) I believe that this case will end badly for this man. Someone in his position and political inclinations should have been more prudent. I seriously doubt that his stupidity will translate into improved access to firearms in NYC. I believe that is simply naive thinking in my opinion. The beast has too much power. I may be proven wrong and I hope I am proven wrong, but I am pretty pessimistic on this man's chances of leniancy from NYC court. Just my opinion.
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Old December 16, 2011, 04:16 PM   #19
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I imagine this HAS to be intentional; as a way to spark a "clean" lawsuit that will make its way up to the SCOTUS. I wouldn't have picked NY though, they have some of the toughest "gun laws" in the country. Just like Plaxico if the suit does not go in his favor he is facing REAL jail time.
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Old December 16, 2011, 04:45 PM   #20
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If he did intend to do this I hope he did his homework because the road to victory is much longer than what it seems.

Revell v. Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, 598 F. 3d 128 - Court of Appeals, 3rd Circuit 2010
http://scholar.google.com/scholar_ca...29871713496988
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Old December 16, 2011, 04:51 PM   #21
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This is all speculation until we know his point of origin. It seems VERY likely to me this is another FOPA violation on NY's part. It's happened before and it'll keep happening until the 2A is really fixed in NY and NYC generally.
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Old December 16, 2011, 04:52 PM   #22
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The NY law deprives the guy of a functional handgun for self defense. This is a no brainer after Heller, it will just take time. Unfortunately, it may be mostly his time that is taken up.

If this attorney is jailed, it raises an ugly question: is it unconstitutional incarceration under the Second Amendment?
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Old December 16, 2011, 05:00 PM   #23
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Seems like some guy who thought his California permit would work in New York
If the average gun owner didn't know different, he might not think a permit would be needed to transport a locked, unloaded firearm. NY and NJ are something of an anomaly in that regard.

In NY/NJ there is NO legal path whatsoever for out-of-state residents to even possess a firearm, which amounts to a ban for any non-resident. If properly challenged, I don't see how the law could pass any standard of scrutiny.

I have not seen where the man had intended to be a test case, it will be interesting to see how this goes.
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Old December 16, 2011, 05:09 PM   #24
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§ 926A. INTERSTATE TRANSPORTATION OF FIREARMS
Notwithstanding any other provision of any law or any rule or regulation of a State or any political subdivision thereof, any person who is not otherwise prohibited by this chapter from transporting, shipping, or receiving a firearm shall be entitled to transport a firearm for any lawful purpose from any place where he may lawfully possess and carry such firearm to any other place where he may lawfully possess and carry such firearm if, during such transportation the firearm is unloaded, and neither the firearm nor any ammunition being transported is readily accessible or is directly accessible from the passenger compartment of such transporting vehicle: Provided, That in the case of a vehicle without a compartment separate from the driver’s compartment the firearm or ammunition shall be contained in a locked container other than the glove compartment or console.

Is there any way to interpret this as applying to entering the state w/ the intent of passing through it to another state via transfer to a common carrier (e.g., a commercial aircraft)?

.
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Old December 16, 2011, 05:43 PM   #25
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Sounds like he stayed in NYC for two days. That will present a problem to his defense. FOPA does not cover that. There is discussion whether FOPA covers stopping at a gas station and eating as well. If this man did this on purpose, oh my, I think he will see jail time out of this and be forgotten from the front page all to soon.
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