Gun control law sparks protest outside Capitol

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Bridget Murphy, from Fairfield, and an employee of Remington Arms, takes part in a rally in support of Assembly Bill No. 5955, which calls for the full repeal of the NY SAFE Act, at East Capitol Park on Tuesday, May 21, 2013 in Albany, NY. Murphy works on the 870 shotgun assembly line. Organizers said that they had a half a million petition cards calling to allow Bill No. 5955 to be voted on in the Assembly. (Paul Buckowski / Times Union)

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Albany

Opponents of the SAFE gun control act gathered on the east steps of the state Capitol on Tuesday to denounce Gov. Andrew Cuomo and legislative leaders, and to press for the law's full repeal.

Hosted by the NY2A Grassroots Coalition, the rally attracted about 400 participants at its peak. Speakers included the repeal measure's legislative sponsor, Hudson Valley Republican Assemblyman Steve Katz, as well as Richard Mack, a former Arizona county sheriff prominent in conservative circles.

Other speakers advised the crowd not to register their weapons and counseled them on the importance of "jury nullification" when faced with a law one deems to be unconstitutional. The activists had a voter registration table and promised to make the Second Amendment a key issue in the next elections.

The group then headed into the Capitol to distribute what they said was almost 400,000 signed postcard-size slips of paper calling for a vote on Katz's repeal bill.

"It is self-evident the SAFE Act is unconstitutional," the handbill read in part.

While Cuomo and lawmakers tweaked a few provisions of the SAFE Act during the vote on the state budget in March, it's not expected to be overturned.

The measure expands the definition of banned assault weapons, requires health care providers to report gun-owning patients who might pose a danger, and allows permit holders to exempt their information from public record if they meet set criteria.

Also Tuesday, Cuomo said his memory of an April meeting with sheriffs from around the state to discuss their concerns with the SAFE Act didn't square with accounts reported in a front-page story in the Times Union.

In that article, Chemung County Sheriff Christopher Moss said the governor told the sheriffs that, in Moss' words, "they should not be interjecting their personal opinions in reference to the law."

"That's not my recollection of the meeting at all," Cuomo said.

Asked whether the sheriffs' public objections were helpful, he said, "People have opinions, and people can offer their opinions — and that's part of the process. I offer mine ... they can offer theirs."

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