Ever since New York State became a shall-issue state overnight after a Supreme Court decision, things have been up in the air as to what the future of the State actually looks like. We know that new gun control measures were put in place almost immediately, of which take effect September 1st.
New York is a funny state where each issuing authority can place restrictions on concealed carry permits. Most of these restrictions come in the form of a stamp, or even handwritten, that’s placed on your permit and says ‘Hunting & Target Only’. What that means is that, according to the issuing authority, you may only carry your firearm concealed while doing those things, and to/from those things.
That’s pretty limiting.
However, the permit itself is to carry a concealed firearm in the State of New York, and what many don’t know is that those restrictions are administrative. That means they hold no weight of the law and if you were found to be carrying a concealed handgun while having those restrictions on your permit, there isn’t much they can do. You won’t be arrested, your gun won’t be taken away, however if your judge were to find out what you did then you run the chance of your permit being revoked.
Fast-forward to the shall-issue days of today, and we’re in new territory.
The Supreme Court decision basically stated that ‘proper cause’ for a concealed carry permit wasn’t required. Since then, applications for concealed carry permits have gone through the roof throughout the entire state.
More importantly, for those who have restrictions placed on their current permits, a judge would usually want that person to explain to them why the restrictions should be removed. In other words, they want ‘proper cause’ to justify their removing of the restrictions.
Do you see where I’m going with this?
The best thing to do would be for each county, who places restrictions, to simply remove restrictions from all permits. That’s not likely to happen, however, and a letter to the judge is usually the step to take in the removal process.
How To Get The Restrictions Removed From Your Permit
While every judge is different, they should be following the same line after this Supreme Court decision. To get your restrictions removed from your New York State Concealed Carry Permit, do the following steps:
- Write a letter to your judge asking for the restrictions to be removed. Send this letter in along with an amendment for your permit. If the amendment has an ‘Other’ section for the reason you’re filing, write “Remove Restrictions”. Find the address of your county clerk, or whoever handles permits in your jurisdiction. Basically, find out where your judge works and mail a letter to that address. Be sure to address the letter to your judge, and write a professional letter with your request. Keep it short, simple, and to the point. Your main point, of course, is to have your restrictions removed. When writing the letter to your judge, it could prove useful to mention the recent Supreme Court Ruling, which I’ve heard people have done and have had success.
- Wait for a response. Depending on where you are, this could take a few days or you could be waiting a few months. It’s all dependent on how quickly your judge addresses your request, and it’s sadly that simple.
- Receive (hopefully) your new unrestricted permit! Congratulations! As a law-abiding citizen who has already jumped through the State’s hoops, you’re now legally able to carry a concealed handgun outside of hunting and target shooting.
With these steps, you should now be able to secure that previously elusive unrestricted NYS concealed carry permit.
If you’ve been successful, drop a comment below with your results.
