Jason Tsulis regularly drives two hours from his home in Manhattan to a gun range in the Hudson Valley to practice his shooting.

His firearm is a Staccato-P 9mm.

“You have to put in the rounds, you have to put in the time," he said. "I would like to be able to not be overpowered and carry the equalizer with me."

Tsulis got a license to carry the equalizer outside of his home, concealed.

He applied after this 2022 U.S. Supreme Court case struck down the requirement that New Yorkers needed a "proper cause" to carry a handgun in public. The case came from New York residents who sued state officials when their concealed carry permit applications were denied.

"I do this because it’s my right. I do this because there’s people I love that I would like to protect," Tsulis said.

But Tsulis told NY1 he faced unexplained delays in getting his license. He called the NYPD License Division mismanaged, understaffed and unresponsive — common complaints among applicants.

"I called, and I tried to get in contact with the divisions inspector, the legal department. I never got an answer," he said.

The process is supposed to take six months at most under state law. If there's a delay related to the applicant, the law requires the NYPD to provide a reason.

Tsulis had an approved application but there was a delay in getting the actual license. To receive it, he had to get a lawyer to petition the NYPD in court.

Hiring a lawyer has become an unofficial part of the process in New York.

Other applicants who filed court petitions included their emails to the NYPD License Division

"I’ve tried to get an update through the NYPD here by email, various phone numbers, and no one responds or gets back to me," one applicant wrote.

"I have not received any communication from an investigator. I am now in the 11th month," another applicant wrote.

Another applicant wrote, "It has been many months and I have not heard back from the office nor have I received any updated email. I’ve been waiting patiently."

Meanwhile, emails in the court record show how NYPD license staff — led by Inspector Hugh Bogle — respond.

"Each investigator has a large quantity of applications,” one investigator wrote.

Before the Supreme Court decision, the NYPD License Division got hundreds of applications. After the decision, thousands of new applications were filed. Last year, the NYPD got 9,432 applications. This year through Feb. 4, the NYPD received 888 applications.

"They were overwhelmed, they were overworked," Tsulis said. "You could tell."

The NYPD did not provide the number of applications pending or licenses issued.

"Some reasonable investigation is still required because we cannot emphasize enough how dangerous firearms are," George Grasso, who served as the NYPD's chief legal counsel from 1997 to 2002, said. “The idea to think, the police department doing a quality of job in the context of thousands of applications, especially in the context of all of the other work the NYPD has to do maintain public safety, that’s a really tough row to hoe that they have right now."

In a statement, the police department said, "The NYPD will continue to maintain its high standards when conducting background checks and issuing permits irrespective of volume. This process can be lengthy to ensure the thorough screening and review of applicants. We will not simply rubber stamp these permits as the ability to carry a concealed firearm in New York City is an immense responsibility."

But to attorney Mirel Fisch, "the License Division is simply not acting."

She has filed court petitions on behalf of 20 concealed carry applicants, including Tsulis. She also sent the NYPD about 250 letters.

These petitions typically get action.

"In New York, it’s almost taboo to talk about. People don’t like guns, people don’t like the idea of you having a gun, but it is a civil right," she said. "It’s your right to bear arms."

But that right is no match for the NYPD License Division.

"I think there’s just complete mismanagement," she said.

The complaints go beyond the delays — there was a privacy breach in the NYPD License Division.

NY1 confirmed that in October, an NYPD licensing official emailing an applicant attached an intake spreadsheet containing the names of more than 8,000 firearm permit applicants from 2023 through October 2024 — more than 6,000 of the applicants were seeking concealed carry permits.

An applicant who received it wrote to NY1 that the privacy leak showed a “shocking lack of oversight or care.”

An NYPD spokeswoman called it a human error and that the department put new measures in place to prevent it from happening again.

Meanwhile, with a concealed carry permit, Tsulis can go about his business, though there are limitations. He can’t carry in the subway or stores that prohibit fire arms. Times Square is also off limits.

While Tsulis considers the ability to carry in public his right, he says he recognizes that he must exercise that right responsibly.