NYSRPA files lawsuit against NYC over pistol license fees

TROY, NY (04/05/2011)(readMedia)-- The New York State Rifle & Pistol Association (NYSRPA) in conjunction with the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) have filed suit against the City of New York over the fees charged by the New York City Police Department for the costs associated with the processing of pistol license applications.

NYSRPA believes that both the City and State of New York violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment by requiring the payment of fees as a prerequisite for the lawful exercise of the specifically enumerated individual civil right to keep and bear arms as guaranteed by the 2nd Amendment.

"The U.S. Supreme Court has recently made it clear that individuals have a right to own guns. Government cannot place arbitrary financial constraints upon those wishing to exercise this right any more than it can for those wishing to exercise their right to vote, " said Tom King, President of NYSRPA.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg himself publicly acknowledged the indefensible nature of the fee structure last October when he urged the City Council to lower the costs specifically to avoid a lawsuit:

"We want to be in compliance with the law ... so that we don't want to lose the ability to have reasonable controls. If we have controls that the courts have ruled too onerous or too unfair, we could lose the whole thing."

The City Council ignored the Mayor and flatly refused to take up this issue. NYSRPA has no choice but to take the issue to court.