Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on Friday reminded New Yorkers that Thursday's concealed carry gun ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court is not going to deter law enforcement from cracking down on guns in New York City.
During an appearance on "Mornings On 1," Bragg noted that the ruling does not make all guns in New York City "magically" legal.
"We have appropriately strong gun laws in New York. And with the Supreme Court, it undoubtedly undermines public safety, but we still have a licensing regime in place," he said. "So if you had a gun two days ago, that was not licensed. It does not magically become a legal gun today, and we're going to continue to enforce our state's appropriately strong gun laws as we've been doing throughout the year."
On Thursday, the Supreme Court struck down a New York law that required people show "proper cause" to obtain a concealed carry license.
Bragg said he and other prosecutors in the city will continue to crack down on the "iron pipeline" of illegal guns entering New York from Southern states, and they will also crack down on any gun sold in the state that is being carried without a proper permit.
His statements came as Democratic lawmakers throughout the state, including Mayor Eric Adams and Gov. Kathy Hochul, vowed to created new legislation that would designate certain areas in the five boroughs as gun-free zones.
But Tom King, president of the New York State Rifle and Pistol Association, the NRA's state affiliate, has said that his organization will "do everything we can to make sure that our people… have the full rights granted to them under the Second Amendment."
During an appearance on "Mornings On 1," he said Democratic lawmakers are using rhetoric to cast fear in New Yorkers, saying that other states have concealed carry laws and shootings are not common there.
He also added that there is already an increase in gun violence in the city, and criminals will be deterred from attacking people on the streets if people are able to legally obtain guns.
“That's the big boogeyman that the anti-gunners throw up: 'There's gonna be blood in the streets.' Well, I don't think there can be much more blood in the streets than there is in New York City right now," King said.