West
Second Amendment fight: Gun rights group sues to block New York's body armor ban
A gun-rights group is suing the state of New York in order to block the enforcement of its body armor ban.
The Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC), a California-based non-profit organization, filed its Second Amendment lawsuit in the Western District of New York on Monday, arguing the ban is unconstitutional and is seeking a declaratory judgment that New Yorkers have a fundamental right to keep and bear arms — including body armor. The group is also seeking a permanent injunction to halt the enforcement of the ban.
The law — which restricts sales of vests defined as “bullet-resistant soft body armor” — was hastily passed by state lawmakers following the Buffalo supermarket shooting in May 2022 which left 10 people dead. Shooter Payton Gendron was sentenced last year to 11 consecutive life sentences, having pleaded guilty to all state charges including murder, domestic terrorism and hate crimes. All 10 victims were Black.
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A teacher puts on a bulletproof vest during a live fire training session in Thistle, Utah, on Oct. 5, 2019. (George Frey/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
New York’s ban is aimed at stopping criminals from gaining an advantage over peace officers, or security guards like Aaron Salter, who was killed trying to stop Gendron’s supermarket rampage.
During the killings, Gendron wore a steel-plated vest — armor strong enough to stop a handgun round fired by Salter, who tried to halt the shooting.
Under New York law, a person is prohibited from purchasing or taking possession of body armor if it is not being used in an eligible profession such as law enforcement or the military.
Furthermore, nobody is allowed to “sell, exchange, give or dispose of body armor…to an individual…not engaged or employed in an eligible profession,” the law states.
Violations are subject to a Class A misdemeanor for a first offense and a Class E felony for any subsequent offense.
FPC President Brandon Combs blasted the New York law while announcing the lawsuit.
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Buffalo mass shooter Payton Gendron still faces federal charges in relation to the attack. (Erie County District Attorney’s Office/Scott Olson/Getty Images)
“New York’s body armor ban shows that the state’s commitment to authoritarianism has collapsed into absurdity, making it a crime to buy and use simple personal protective equipment,” Combs said in a statement. “New York’s laws have gone so far off the deep end that it would surprise exactly no one if Gov. Hochul and her goons banned safety glasses next. FPC looks forward to eliminating this unconstitutional law and teaching New York another lesson about constitutionally protected rights.”
FPC said that Americans have a deeply rooted tradition of keeping and wearing armor and says that whenever the usefulness of armor outweighed the burden of wearing it, armor was used. That tradition, combined with the lack of historical restrictions, “evinces a robust right to possess and wear body armor for self-defense,” the group said.
The case is captioned as Heeter v. James. Attorney General Letitia James, New York State Police Superintendent Steven James and Erie County Acting District Attorney Michael Keane are named as the defendants. FPC is joined in the case by Benjamin Heeter, an FPC member.
A New York law makes purchasing body armor illegal.
New York already has tough gun laws on the books and the state sought even more restrictions on gun owners following the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that declared the state’s previous concealed carry permitting requirements unconstitutional. Following that decision, New York passed the “Concealed Carry Improvement Act” (CCIA) but parts of it were struck down last year.
However, controversial parts of the law remain intact, including a requirement that applicants demonstrate good moral character and disclose household and family members on a permit application. New York is also allowed to enforce bans on concealed carry in so-called “sensitive places,” including theaters, bars, public parks and other spaces.
It’s also against the law to purchase pepper spray in New York, although using it in self-defense is legal.
Fox News’ Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
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SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — While June is usually full of exuberant Pride Month celebrations, June 12 feels different for many in the LGBTQ community.
10 years ago, a mass shooting at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando claimed the lives of 49 people and wounded dozens more.
Stephen Torres, who acts as program manager for the Castro LGBTQ Cultural District, said the annual memorial vigil honoring the victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting is a significant part of Pride Month. It’s a reminder that Pride was born out of protest and that safe spaces for queer people will always be needed.
“Our pride, our joy, our celebration is born out of hard-fought strife and pain, and unfortunately, Pulse is part of that,” said Torres.
For Christopher Vasquez, Pulse was once his sanctuary. Vasquez now lives in San Francisco but is originally from Orlando. Every time he visited home, he spent time at Pulse. Although he wasn’t in Orlando when the shooting happened, he still felt its impact.
“When Pulse opened in 2004, it was new and fun and vibrant. It was a new, safe space for us to come dance and just have a great time,” said Vasquez. “I was just devastated. It was like a piece of my soul was taken from me. Losing 49 people — not just from my hometown but from my LGBTQ community — was absolutely heart-wrenching, and it lives with me to this day, 10 years later.”
Vasquez spoke to the crowd about what Pulse meant to him. They then marched together down Castro Street carrying a sign that read, “Remember the 49,” and laid flowers in honor of the victims.
Vasquez said the fight for LGBTQ rights and acceptance isn’t over. “It’s been 10 years and, for a while, I think people felt very comfortable with where we had come as a community in the LGBTQ space with marriage equality and other gains. But truly, Pulse was a reminder that we have so much further to go because our physical safety is always under attack.”
An e-bike cyclist died after a crash with a vehicle in the Elyria Swansea neighborhood, Denver police said.
The Denver Police Department reported the crash near Steele Street and Eastbound Interstate 70 at 7:24 p.m. Thursday and said one person was taken to the hospital.
The cyclist was pronounced dead at the hospital, agency officials said on social media Friday afternoon. The crash is still under investigation.
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Seattle, WA
VIDEO: West Seattle High School celebrates student-athletes at big College Signing Day ceremony
(WSB video/photos)
The last week of the school year began with a lively celebration in the West Seattle High School gym – the cheer team cheered, and band members played, as student-athletes made a grand entrance for a group college-signing ceremony. Family members and friends cheered them too, from the bleachers.
WSHS athletic director Corey Sorenson welcomed everyone, thanked the parents for their support and acknowledged the student-athletes for their hard work, and then it was time to sign letters of intent:
15 student-athletes participated on Wednesday – here’s the list Sorenson provided along with the names of two others who weren’t there but will continue their athletic careers in college too – we’ve interspersed this with more of the photos we took at the event:
Baseball:
Cody Buehring – Whitman College
Jake McCall – University of Puget Sound
Boys Swim & Dive:
Jeremy O’Keefe – Whitworth University
Lacrosse:
Zoe Preveau – William Jewell College
Volleyball:
Jaslynn Daily – City University of New York, Queens College
Softball:
Daeja Piggee – Winston Salem State University
Cheerleading:
Amaya Stagi – Seattle University
Football:
Jonah Pelander – Palomar College
Scott Bremen – College of the Siskiyous
LJ Moody – Palomar College
Esayas Brigham – Palomar College
Gabe Crawford – Portland State University
Girls Soccer:
Grace Carroll – St. Olaf College
Grace Reasoner – Wellesley College
Boys Soccer:
Cole Theisen – Le Moyne College
Signed already, but not able to attend signing day on Wednesday
Claire Gordon – University of Washington, Rowing
Sacha Ninburg – Lower Columbia College, Baseball
Next big ceremony for the graduating seniors is WSHS’s commencement ceremony, 8 pm next Wednesday (June 17) at McCaw Hall downtown,
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