Gun advocates may not be happy to hear that there's a new bill in New York that will let anyone, even their neighbor, take their guns away from them.
This bill, introduced by New York City assemblyman Brian Kavanagh (D-Manhattan) would let law enforcement, relatives, and "anyone who's concerned," file a restraining order against someone so they wouldn't be able to buy or possess a firearm, according to The Mental Recession.
A restraining order placed on someone who already owns a firearm will result in their gun(s) being confiscated.
This bill would affect law-abiding citizens, who would have to defend themselves in a court of law even if there haven't been any charges filed against them, The Daily Caller reported.
"This is a bill that would permit family members, or friends, or medical professionals, or law enforcement, or really, anyone who's concerned that somebody having access to guns poses a serious danger to go to a court and present evidence of that, and if the court were persuaded, they would be able to issue a temporary order preventing the person from acquiring or possessing guns," Kavanagh said.
He added that the person affected by the order will be able to appeal the decision after their guns have been taken away.
Social workers, registered nurses, and "unlicensed" professional are already allowed to decide whether state police can take a gun owner's weapons away under the SAFE Act, which was introduced by Governor Andrew Cuomo, The Mental Recession reported.
Kavanagh's bill would add "anyone who's concerned" to this list of people who have this power.
Kavanagh said the bill focuses on balancing the safety of the public with people's rights to possess guns in certain situations, The Daily Caller reported. However, not everyone believes this bill will have the desired effect.
"The legislation is redundant," said Tom King, president of the New York State Rifle and Pistol Association. "It's a typical election year, election time piece of legislation that's not going to do anything to make anybody safer."
