So most of the gun stores in my county were raided by the New York State Police yesterday. “During the 10-month probe, five Nassau County gun shops illegally sold assault weapons to undercover DA investigators and members of the New York State Police,” nassaucountyny.gov reports. “As a result of the investigation, Rice’s office has arrested and charged four store owners and five of their employees.” Imagine this happening with all of the bakeries or hair salons in your county. We’re talking about the horrors of . . . adjustable stocks. OK, stocks that can be modified to be adjustable . . .

Rice said that shop owners were breaking the law by temporarily modifying the weapons to appear as though they lacked the required characteristics of an assault weapon.  However, the temporary modification was easily reversible, thereby making them full-fledged assault weapons. For example, a pin was placed in the stock of a weapon in an attempt to prevent its collapse. However, the pins were designed to be easily removable making the stock collapsible.

While those who willing broke the law should get what they deserve, buying a NY-compliant AR is like buying a Lincoln Navigator with disabled power seats. But imagine the loophole: instead of abolishing the firearms, abolish all the dealers selling them.

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Brett Solomon got his first taste of the magazine world covering car electronics for CarSound & Performance Magazine. He landed the job by being noticed for designing high-end car audio systems. Which was fine by him because there was no way he was going to pass the third level of calculus toward an electrical engineering degree at University of Delaware. Not with those DuPont scholars around campus, he’ll take Journalism over Engineering, thank you very much. He has since written for a number of publications (think in-flight journalism) that lack the chutzpah of Robert Farago, and having all of those milquetoast reviews pent up in his system now allows his pen to spit fire. We’ll, he is just not that mean but happy to tell the truth…and the truth is most firearms are fun!

12 COMMENTS

  1. Getting busted for something that is not illegal in 45+ out of 50 states should be a violation of the equal protection clause.

  2. Those evil telescoping stocks must be wiped off the face of New York. And what’s up with that black color? Ugh. Now, if Isaac Mizrahi designed these rifles with lots of happy colors, they wouldn’t be evil and they’d be legal in New York. And San Francisco. And, like, everywhere.

  3. Kathleen Rice waisted $80,000 on closing gun stores. Instead of spending that money to get MS13, Latin Kings, or other gangs off the street she targeted the easiest prey. She knew what she was doing. She knows these store owners will get off because they did nothing wrong. They turned LEO rifles into NYS compliant rifles however once this is shown on the news or in new papers she will say how dangerous these guns are and start a new movement to get them banned. 80,000,000 law abiding gun owners in the US and she is going after us instead of the criminals. More people die in car accidents which are powered by high output engines than gun deaths each year. Maybe we should call them assault vehicles. More alcohol related deaths occur each year than gun deaths. The list goes on. But because the pubic is not educated we are taught that guns are dangerous. More liberal crap

  4. That $4,000 Italian over/under shotgun you have there is illegal. Well, it can be made illegal with a $4 hacksaw blade.

    You’re under arrest.

    • I see what you’re saying and it make sense. unless he cut the barrel its not a SBS. Same for the rifle, unless he remove that pin it shouldn’t be illegal either.

  5. The danger of this if it stands cannot be underestimated . the guns were compliant when they were sold. Blammo is correct , any shotgun can be made a sawed off with a hacksaw.

  6. “However, the temporary modification was easily reversible, thereby making them full-fledged assault weapons.”

    These firearms were selective-fire?

    I kept reading this article waiting for the “where was the ATF during this?” sentence that never came. Disappointing. I loves me some ATF bashing.

    • I kept reading this article waiting for the “where was the ATF during this?” sentence that never came. Disappointing. I loves me some ATF bashing.

      They don’t need the ATF. Just so you know, the NY law mirrors the Federal AWB that expired, so we’re still living under that same tyranny. The AWB never expired for us.

  7. Thank you Armed Intelligensia for your astuteness of the issue. Wes, these were not select fire guns- somehow the adjustable stock makes them assault weapons. The ATF was not involved because it is the NYS Assault Weapons Ban. Instead the New York State Police handled the sting.
    The ensuing shenanigans can be described as maddening. Stay tuned- I might not have gun stores next month. Especially when you consider the legal fees these small shop keeps are facing.

  8. TITLE 18 > PART I > CHAPTER 13 > § 242
    § 242. Deprivation of rights under color of law
    http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode18/usc_sec_18_00000242—-000-.html
    Whoever, under color of any law, statute, ordinance, regulation, or custom, willfully subjects any person in any State, Territory, Commonwealth, Possession, or District to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States, or to different punishments, pains, or penalties, on account of such person being an alien, or by reason of his color, or race, than are prescribed for the punishment of citizens, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both; and if bodily injury results from the acts committed in violation of this section or if such acts include the use, attempted use, or threatened use of a dangerous weapon, explosives, or fire, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both; and if death results from the acts committed in violation of this section or if such acts include kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill, shall be fined under this title, or imprisoned for any term of years or for life, or both, or may be sentenced to death.

    ************

    NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. (http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml)

    *************

  9. Well folks a quick update if anyone actually reads this. At least one of the owners after having criminal charges dropped turned around and sued the county, da and nysp. A federal jury awarded 5,000,000 ( yes million).
    Fast forward and since then pretty much all semis with any miltary characteristics are required to be registered and I assume will be confiscated once the database is completed and complied.

    Welcome to New Yorkistan! Leave your due process and AW at the border.

    http://wantagh.patch.com/articles/seaford-gun-store-owner-awarded-5-million-in-lawsuit

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