Cuomo pleased SAFE Act upheld by court

Federal judges have mostly upheld a controversial gun control law known as the SAFE Act. The law was passed by the State Legislature and Gov. Andrew Cuomo in January 2013.

The law was passed after the December 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., when 20 first-graders and six educators were killed when 154 rounds were fired in less than 5 minutes.

Orleans County’s elected officials at the village, town and county level all passed formal resolutions opposing the SAFE Act and calling for it to be repealed because it violated Second Amendment rights and was approved in a hasty manner without public comment.

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan said the main parts of the SAFE Act did not violate the Second Amendment because of the relationship between bans on assault weapons with large-capacity magazines and controlling crime.

“When used, these weapons tend to result in more numerous wounds, more serious wounds, and more victims,” according to the ruling written by Circuit Judge Jose A. Cabranes. “These weapons are disproportionately used in crime, and particularly in criminal mass shootings. They are also disproportionately used to kill law enforcement officers.”

While the court upheld most of the SAFE Act, it found Connecticut’s ban on a non-semi-automatic Remington 7615 to be unconstitutional. The court also said a seven-round load limit in New York could not be imposed, according to Associated Press reports.

Gov. Cuomo issued this statement today about the court’s decision:

“Today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld what we have long known to be true – that the core provisions of the NY SAFE Act do not violate the Second Amendment. Today, common sense prevailed.

“When we passed the SAFE Act, just days after the tragedies in Newtown and Webster, New York proved to the nation that it is possible to enact sensible gun control that coexists with the Second Amendment. We showed that it can be done with bi-partisan support from both urban and rural communities. And we took a fundamental step forward to help end the stream of senseless killings by keeping guns out of the hands of criminals and the dangerously mentally ill.

“This case validates a simple, fundamental truth about gun control: that it is possible to have strong laws that keep our communities safe, while at the same time respecting the rights of law-abiding gun owners. New York has set the example – and it’s far past time for Washington to follow suit and pass a sensible national gun control policy.”