out of stater traveling through New York airports with handgun

folks,

i have to travel through a new york airport and back for the holidays.

i live outside of ny state. i have a ccw in my home state, and my ccw is valid in the state i am traveling to.

i know mcclure volkmer protects me if i'm making an uninterrupted trip through NY state (locked in trunk of car, unloaded, etc) ... does this include airports?

i understand ny state law only allows for one exception for non-residents/non ny permit holders to bring a handgun into the state (national match).

i heard u.s. justice dept and/or tsa put issued several memos to local cops in several ny airports ...

is there any truth to this?

any links would be helpful.

 

I would think that one question that would affect this is "Is your baggage going to be checked through, or are you going to take posession of it in New York?"

 

If you will be taking possession of the baggage that contains the handgun at the airport, it is going to be trouble for you if they figure it out. Once in the car and headed directly toward your State of destination, wherein you are legal, there shouldn't be a legal problem so long as the gun is unloaded and locked in your trunk the whole way.

 

Here's potential trouble | Here's you

You're mighty close to the line. Just make darn sure that you DON'T PICK UP the luggage at the NY airport!

 

I believe you'll be arrested

you could get one to three years in jail.
People DO get arrested there for even accidentally (due to weather)
flying into NY with a firearm.

I would fly to connecticut, Philly, Del, somewhere close then drive (carefully)

It will be cheaper then the lawyer and time in jail

 

Don Young Letter on NYC Airports

http://www.anjrpc.org/DefendingYourRights/us%20letter.pdf

U. S. Department of Justice
Office of Legislative Affairs
Office of the Assistant Attorney General Washington, D.C. 20530
February 18, 2005

The Honorable Don Young
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515


Dear Congressman Young:

Thank you for your letter, dated June 18, 2003, to Admiral James M. Loy, then-Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), concerning the applicability of 18 U.S.C. section 926A to persons at airports in New York State who are taking flights to destinations outside of New York. Because section 926A is a provision of the Gun Control Act (GCA), which the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) enforces, TSA forwarded your letter to the Department of Justice for response. We apologize for the delay in responding.

In your letter you explained that local police officers in New York have threatened several individuals at John F. Kennedy International Airport and Albany International Airport with arrest for firearms possession based on strict State laws, and that in at least one case the firearms were confiscated. You explained that: (1) the people carrying the firearms were not prohibited from possessing firearms under Federal law, (2) the people had apparently traveled directly, without any interruption in the transportation, to the airports from other States where they legally could possess firearms, (3) their firearms and ammunition were secured in accordance with all applicable regulations for airline travel, and (4) they were flying to other States or countries where they could legally possess firearms.

You then asked if TSA agrees that section 926A enables these travelers to possess the firearms legally in the New York airports and if so, if TSA would inform local police and prosecutors about this provision of the GCA. We appreciate your bringing this issue to our attention. The Department of Justice agrees that the provisions of section 926A apply to the situation set forth above assuming: (1) the person is traveling from somewhere he lawfully may possess and carry a firearm; (2) en route to the airport the firearm is unloaded and not accessible from the passenger compartment of his car; (3) the person transports the firearm directly from his

The Honorable Don Young
Page Two

vehicle to the airline check-in desk without any interuption in the transportation; and (4) while carrying the firearm to the check-in desk it is unloaded and in a locked container. This interpretation reflects the apparent congressional intent in enacting this provision, while allowing State and local law enforcement to continue to enforce their firearms laws aggressively to promote public safety. We will inform the applicable law enforcement authorities of our interpretation of section 926A.

We trust this information responds to your inquiry. If we can be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact this office.

Sincerely,


William E. Moschella
Assistant Attorney General

 

Watch out for this scenerio!!!!!

This sort of thing happened to me while changing planes in Chicago. The arriving airline forced me to pick up my baggage and recheck it at the departing airline, something I had not anticipated. I was P****D to say the least. I hired a Red Cap to tote my luggage from one counter to the other on grounds that I might be able to claim he was part of the common carrier system. As it happened I got through with out any questions asked, but I'll neve rmake that mistake again.

 

I am aware of that letter

afaik there is a lawsuit against Port Authority NY/NJ to make them
obey the law.

http://www.anjrpc.org/fopalawsuit.htm



ANJRPC SUES NY/NJ PORT AUTHORITY FOR JAILING HONEST GUN OWNER

February 27, 2006 - The Association of New Jersey Rifle & Pistol Clubs, Inc. (ANJRPC) announced that it has commenced a lawsuit against the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and one of its police officers for wrongfully arresting and imprisoning for nearly five days a 57-year old Utah man delayed at Newark Airport by a baggage error while traveling from Utah to Pennsylvania.

The lawsuit seeks more than $3 million in damages for civil rights violations and a permanent injunction forcing the Port Authority to follow Federal law on interstate transport of locked, unloaded firearms that have been secured in luggage and declared by law-abiding citizens.

The Utah man, Gregg Revell, a real estate broker and family man with no criminal record and a Utah firearms permit, was flying alone from Salt Lake City, UT to Allentown, PA to retrieve a car he bought and drive it home. He was travelling with a firearm for personal protection. As required by Federal law, the firearm was unloaded, cased, locked and inside his luggage when he declared it at check-in in Salt Lake City on March 31, 2005.

Due to an airline-caused baggage error, Mr. Revell missed his connection from Newark to Allentown and had to stay overnight in New Jersey. When he checked in at Newark Airport the next morning to complete his travels, he again declared his firearm, as required by FAA regulations. He was then arrested for possession of a firearm without a New Jersey state license, and imprisoned in Essex County jail for five days until his family arranged bail, which had been initially set unusually high at $15,000 cash (no bond).

But Mr. Revell’s travels were protected by the Firearms Owner Protection Act, a Federal law passed in 1986 to protect law-abiding citizens who travel with firearms. (See 18 U.S.C. § 926A.) That law trumps state and local gun laws and protects interstate travel with firearms under certain circumstances, all of which were present in Mr. Revell’s case. Several months after the arrest, all charges were withdrawn and the prosecutor’s case administratively dismissed.

"The Port Authority blatantly violated Federal law when it arrested Gregg Revell," said Scott Bach, President of the Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs and a member of the NRA Board of Directors. "Those charged with enforcing the law have a special responsibility to follow it themselves," Bach continued. "Mr. Revell’s arrest is part of a pattern of similar misconduct by the Port Authority throughout the New York-New Jersey metropolitan areas."

"This lawsuit is intended to send a signal not only to the Port Authority but to every agency and officer responsible for policing our airports and highways: if you violate the rights of law-abiding gun owners, you will be held fully accountable." The lawsuit also names the arresting Port Authority police officer, Scott Erickson, as a defendant.

Once inside Essex County prison, Mr. Revell was subjected to numerous atrocities. He was thrown into a holding cell with 28 inmates, many of whom were admitted murderers and rapists. He endured a repulsive vomit-covered bed and toilet, was denied his blood pressure and migraine medication, innoculated against his will, given inedible food, strip-searched, and left only with his wits to survive.

"I did nothing wrong yet was arrested and subjected to the worst treatment imaginable for almost a week," said Mr. Revell, who has 8 children, 8 grandchildren and has been married for 36 years. "I brought this lawsuit together with the Association of New Jersey Rifle & Pistol Clubs because I want to stop this kind of abuse from ever happening again," said Revell. "No one should ever have to experience what I experienced," he said. "I paid the price, but I’m committed to making sure no one else does."

View a copy of the Complaint here

View a copy of the Firearms Owner Protection Act here