It doesn't sound to me like she was guilty of anything beyond stupidity. She may even be a very safe and responsible gun owner, for all we know.A tourist from Tennessee waltzed into one of the most secure sites in the city — and politely asked a cop if she could check her weapon.
Instead, she was dragged out in cuffs.
Now, Meredith Graves, 39, is facing at least three years in prison for thinking New York’s gun laws are anything like those in the Bible Belt.
Graves, a fourth-year medical student, showed up at the memorial on Dec. 22 to pay her respects during a trip north for a job interview.
She didn’t realize that the loaded .32-caliber pistol in her purse would be a problem until she saw a sign at the site that read, “No guns allowed,” sources said.
I agree with what the lawyer who successfully defended a man in a similar case said.
I say send her home to TN with a slap on the wrist secure in the knowledge that she'll never do that again.“There may be technical guilt in some of these cases, but the law is not designed to deal with them,” he said.
What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.
Generally people with criminal intent do not walk up to police officers and ask if they can hold their gun for them so they can comply with a sign.
ReplyDeleteFatWhiteMan has it right. Criminals don't ask permission. The solution here is to pass the National Right to Carry Reciprocity Act.
ReplyDeleteGenrally, UNINTENTIONALLY OR STUPIDLY, criminal people do not walk up to police officers and ask if they can hold their gun for them so they can comply with a sign.
ReplyDeleteThere, ftfy.
Greg Camp, sounding like a true gunzloon, sez, "Us not like law, law must change or Greg Camp get mad and SMASH lawz!".
"Us not like law, law must change or (insert anti-gun name here) get mad and SMASH lawz!"
ReplyDeleteSounds like alot of the anti gun people that want to change the current carry laws in the majority of the states that allow private citizens the right to carry firearms.
Unlike Democommie, who sez, "Us not like loose gun laws. Us get mad and smash bad laws. Us throw fit 'bout easy gun sales. . ." Oh, wait, perhaps it's easier to criticize others than yourself.
ReplyDeleteAt least she's not enrolled in law school. Maybe if she gets all of her news from FOX, she was simply not aware of gun laws being primarily a state jurisdiction. It does seem unlikely that a person almost forty years of age would not yet have heard about efforts to make concealed carry laws reciprocal or even universal. Leaving ignorance or stupidity out of the question, it seems fair to assume that she knew full well that she was carrying a concealed firearm illegally in the state of New York.
ReplyDeleteAt the very minimum, she should get whatever huge fine New York presumably levys against such individuals. I doubt the jails and prisons of New York are filled with first-offender rednecks. She should earn extra stupidity points for carrying a gun to a sacred site.
No, the solution is not reciprocity, the solution is to send this silly cow home with a small fine to pay and a warning that a second offense will result in jail time.
ReplyDeleteMikeb302000,
ReplyDeleteThere you go again, using stereotypes for those whom you dislike.
Senate action on national reciprocity is expected in the new year, so get used to it.
mikeb302000 said...
ReplyDeleteNo, the solution is not reciprocity, the solution is to send this silly cow home with a small fine to pay and a warning that a second offense will result in jail time.
December 31, 2011 2:51 PM
Not in New York State/City.....
http://www.queensdefense.com/guns.htm
In New York criminal possession of a weapon, for the purposes of "gun cases" is classified into three "degrees" or levels of seriousness. Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, Third Degree, and Fourth Degree.
Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree is a class C felony, Third Degree is a class D felony, and Fourth Degree is a class A misdemeanor.
The class C felony is punishable by a maximum of 15 years in prison, the D felony by a maximum of 7 years in prison, and the A misdemeanor by a maximum of 1 year in jail. Also, there is a theoretical 1 year mandatory jail sentence on any felony gun conviction.
Personaly, I wish that NYS/C would go the "UK way" and imposes a 5 year prison term on anybody stupid enough to touch a firearm, Emporer Bloomberg need to keep his subjects in line.....
Thomas, How much you wanna bet this woman goes to prison. You've got so much already invested in the persecution complex you keep describing, would you bet money on this one?
ReplyDelete