MSNBC is reporting that the shooting at the NY hospital this afternoon used an AR-15 that had been “modified” such that it didn’t have a pistol grip and used a magazine with only 10 round capacity. Those changes mean only one thing: the rifle was legal under the NY SAFE Act, the assault weapon ban, and legal in New York.

The city of New York (where the shooting took place) has additional restrictions on firearms, including licensing for rifles and shotguns within city limits. It also prohibits semi-auto rifles, making this firearm legal in the State of New York but banned in the City of New York.

The fact that a properly modified and neutered AR-15 was used in a “mass shooting” event such as this will no doubt raise questions. For those in the pro-gun camp the typical response will probably be to claim that this is proof that things like the NY SAFE act doesn’t work, and “assault weapons” bans are meaningless attempts to make guns look less scary without actually making them less deadly. Those in the anti-gun camp will no doubt claim that this is proof that the NY SAFE Act and assault weapons ban aren’t strong enough, and need additional regulations to promote safety.

Stay tuned for more information.

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89 COMMENTS

  1. Shannon is drafting a Twitter post to point out the obvious truth that more people would have died if the gun had a 30 round magazine. Obviously the NY Safe Act saved lives today, blah blah blah.

    • It’s WHO gets their hands on guns that is the problem. Just take a look at this guys picture.

    • Actually it didn’t save more lives you just had a nut job that went after certain people. It wasn’t someone just shooting people at will but targeted individuals. In the right hands a person using that weapon could’ve killed just as many with that 10 round mag as they could with a 30 rounder. Some people can actually swap out 10 round mags and shoot more than someone with a 30 round mag.

      YouTube has plenty of proof.

    • I disagree because it takes seconds to load another mag . So saying that having a 10 round mag saved lives is a bull shit story coming down from the left . I would love to have a conversation with one person who really know what they are talking about .

      • It takes me under 1.5 seconds to reload a Glock 17, ~ 3 seconds to reload an AR-15, and ~ 4 seconds to reload a Ruger GP-100 revolver. I’m far from the quickest at reloading in our shooting clubs. But since we are a group of law-abiding gun owners, only the bad guys need to worry about us.

  2. “Those in the anti-gun camp will no doubt claim that this is proof that the NY SAFE Act and assault weapons ban aren’t strong enough, and need additional regulations to promote safety.”

    Guess how that is going to play out in Cuomo’s NY. Full-on ban is my prediction.

    • Heller wouldn’t seem to allow for an outright ban, but it might be fun watching pols in NY having that explained to them by the court.

      • They might try for state-level licensing of everything, like New Jersey and Illinois. NY already has licensing to get handguns, don’t they?

      • What court praytell is going to do that?

        The court that smacked down the AWB in Friedman v. Highland Park?
        Or the smackdown of the essential rewriting of the DC handgun ban to fit Heller presented in Jackson v. San Francisco?
        Or the smackdown of good cause from california, in the recently “accepted” case of peruta?

        Or drake?
        Kachalsky?
        Woolard?
        Voisine?

        Yes, there clearly is a court ready and waiting to smack down SOME gun law, like SCOTUS has done since McDonald.

      • It already has. The article has erroneous info. That rifle is already banned in NYC, regardless of mods.

    • It’s already banned in NYC. Regardless of mods, that was illegally possessed in the city of New York.

      • IANAL, but as I understand it, a semi-auto with a fixed mag of five rounds or less, with none of the other “Assault Weapon” characteristics, is legal in NYC.
        Thus, as an example, a modified SKS (modified to have a five round internal fixed magazine) would be legal, as I understand it.
        As always, local laws should be checked.

    • Too bad a full ban really means nothing if the shooter obtains a gun through other means and then carried it into the city to commit a crime . . . just like thousands of gangers do every year.

  3. Here is my take: All those rules were drafted by people who claim that you need them to be your masters because you are too stupid to take care of yourself. The abject failure of the rules they make means they are too stupid to be your masters.

  4. That Thordsen stock is LESS scary?

    It’s terrifying. And being a Noo Yawkuh, I oughta know. I own one.

  6. Nothing will change.

    Seems that the Gun Control Bastion that is NY has been breached through, the system is flawed.

  7. “The gunman who went on a deadly rampage inside a Bronx hospital Friday is a former doctor there who has a criminal past that includes getting busted for a frightening sex attack on a stranger, The Post has learned.”

    “Henry Bello, 45, was arrested Aug. 28, 2004, in Manhattan following an incident in which a 23-year-old woman said an assailant grabbed her crotch, held her arms, lifted her up and carried her off, saying, “You’re coming with me,” law-enforcement sources said.

    Bello was charged with sex abuse and unlawful imprisonment, sources said. The disposition of the case was unclear.”

    http://nypost.com/2017/06/30/bronx-hospital-gunman-was-a-former-doctor-with-a-sexual-assault-rap/

      • Compared to what? Knives and other bladed/stabbing weapons never run out of ammo, are easily concealed, and are nearly silent. Large heavy vehicles have ranges measured in the hundreds of miles, go around corners, and weigh tons; they can be used to wipe out multiple targets at once. Firearms are still point and shoot- one target per round. Knives and machetes are easy slashing weapons, capable of multiple targets simultaneously. Let’s not forget about blunt force trauma weapons- hammers, bats, frying pans…. A firearms is a tool, designed for a purpose- to deliver a high-velocity projectile to a target. Regardless of the weapon of choice, dead is dead.

        • Yeah, dead is dead, except guns work a lot better than everything you mentioned with the possible exception of a vehicle… if you happen to be somewhere you can crash into a bunch of people. A hospital ain’t one of them.

          A gun is a force equalizer/multiplier. Even the lowliest peasant can go against a fit, trained individual and come out on top if he has a gun and shoots first. Knights had blades, fusiliers had guns, the latter won out.

          Of course the same is true for little old ladies who want to defend themselves from a home invasion. But let’s not pretend that if you give her a knife or rolling pin that she’s going to be able to do what she could with a gun… and the same is true of bad guys.

  11. Who really cares it’s New York. Full of liberals who can’t make decisions for themselves so they elect people like Cuomo and De Blasio to to run their lives. No sympathy. If you still live there you’ve made your bed.

    • I live in NY (state). All the liberals are in the city, and the population of he city is greater than that of the rest of the entire state. Not really anything we can do since we’re mathematically outnumbered by the big city. I take offense to your redneck rationalization, so eat shit. Hopefully one day you’ll have to put up with what we endure.

      • Again, very simple solution.

        In states such as California, New York, and Massachusetts (any large city over 750,000, really), the State needs to hold a referendum. The ballot would read “should the City of X be made it’s own City-State.”

        Residents of the City would not have a vote. If approved, the city would be made its own polity. It would have 2 (and never more than 2, regardless of population) electoral votes, and would be required to sustain itself (tax revenues, etc.)

        The state could petition for a probationary return to the mother state after 10 years. Also subject to voter approval in the rest of the state. The probationary period is subject to summary special election revocation, permanently excising the city from returning.

        It is a simple, and Constitutional solution, since such a City-State already exists as the District of Columbia. No need for states such as California to secede, since the majority of those wishing to do so are concentrated in the aforementioned large cities. It would very quickly become clear that their non-urban brethren do not find them amicable co-inhabitants.

        These large states are de-facto parasites, and hold the rest of the state hostage to their demands and desires. They are welcome to continue on this path, but should be asked to support it themselves.

        • There’s already a bill proposed called the Upstate UnSAFE Act which would force the law to exist only in NYC and leave the city’s politic out of he rest of he state. As it is, local police don’t even enforce the SAFE Act due to how dumb it is and quiet frankly, none of them are able to even follow all the parts of the law, outside of the obvious pistol grip clause.

          Nonetheless, large portions of he actual stature conservative. I just hate assholes like the original poster who basically say ‘let them rot, they deserve it’ without knowing anything about the subject.

        • Your summation couldn’t be more wrong. NYC is the financial capital of the world. The taxes collected just in Manhattan alone surpass the rest of the state. Hell, there are streets in Manhattan where the taxes surpass entire towns.

        • Yes, there are a lot or rich people in big cities, God bless ’em. There are also vast areas full of people who never had a job, never will have a job, and subsist on government support.

          Like their mothers and grandmothers before them.

          Big cities have higher sales tax rates. They need those taxes to pay for the millions who do nothing but feed at the trough.

    • How long before that becomes “if you live on the coast”? How long before we say “if you live anywhere but X,Y, or Z states”?

  12. Well according to my understanding, that isn’t an assault rifle anymore. That’s just a 5.56 rifle. It’s not a Scary Black Rifle, just an ugly one.

  13. “MSNBC is reporting……”

    Now THAT’S funny!

    #FakeNews

  14. What makes you think I’m offended by you calling me a redneck. I live in a state that doesn’t impede our rights. In fact we get more of our rights unimpeded everyday. You choose to live in a hopeless situation where your rights are infringed upon more everyday. No one makes you live there. Unless you’ve given up your right to self determination also. So move or Suck It Up Buttercup.

    • It’s weird that people are making hysterical straw man assertions like you wish death on New Yorkers when you were making a policy argument. I guess some folks get a thrill from playing the victim. As you said, no one is being made to stay in New York against their will or forcing New Yorkers to vote they way they do. To quote progressive hero, Barack Obama, “Elections have consequences.”

  15. I for one kinda like the look of featureless and minimalist AR’s. They look both a little future and retro in a Jonny Quest /Tomorrowland kind of a way. If Dr. Evil really did have a moon base there is a good chance his henchman would be armed with these.

    • Blech. Looks aside, the (lack) of a pistol grip ruins the feel for me at least… especially for someone with hand\wrist injuries.

  16. I’m originally from The Bronx and remember when a “deadly rampage” was a weekly occurrence. In 1990, when crime peaked, 653 people were murdered in The Bronx. Now, under 100 Bronxites meet their end that way.

    Interestingly, the “former doctor” with his rifle was probably responsible for fewer deaths that the rest of the doctors in that hospital, but the current doctors have a better union.

  17. As a self loader, it is illegal in NYC and unregisterable under their long arm registry.

    More laws that don’t do protect anyone.

  18. Shooter was not Caucasian and not part of the narrative. Will probably not be used in the media for more than 2 days to advance anti-2nd Amendment caterwauling.

  19. Hospitals = Gun Free (Fire em Up) Zones!
    Wonder if the primary target of the nutty doctor (do no harm, LOL) knew if he was being hunted?

  20. Nick- I’m 99.99999% sure that this firearm was illegal in NYC, regardless of modifications. Might want to edit your article, ask it changes the possible responses of the antis.

  21. According to the first headline in a Google search (and the FBI’s definition of a mass shooting), this shooting is not a mass shooting. If half of the people injured die, then it will be a mass shooting.

    • More than four people shot, it’s a mass shooting, according to most definitions of same.
      It’s not a mass “KILLING,” though.
      Seven people shot, one killed. (Last I looked)

      • Using the definition of mass shooting created by the gun controllers, you are correct. Using FBI or USCRS definitions, you are wrong.

  22. I’m calling fake news. Everyone knows you can’t shoot someone unless the gun has a pistol grip.

  24. NEWS FLASH!!!!!!!!!!!!! The left will blame the GUN and NOT the SHOOTER. Oh, and it’s TRUMPS fault.

  27. He could have done as much killing with a couple of snub nose revolvers and a knife. Ban everything made of metal!!!

  28. A doctor kills one person with a rifle and its international news. Doctors kill hundreds of thousands per year with misdiagnosis, dangerous pharmaceuticals, or physician error and its not even a news story.

  29. To end all this senseless killing, why don’t we just make it against the law to shoot someone!

  31. I could have done as much or more damage with a 6 shot 38 Special revolver and speed loaders! Or a Model 1873 Winchester in 44-40 or and 1859 Sharps, Infantry rifle with preloaded paper cartridges!

  32. I call fake news:

    — Hospitals are gun-free zones

    — The SAFE act got rid of all the eee-vill killer rifles

    — Guns aren’t allowed in NYC and Dr. Your Fired had no permit

    Clearly, this shooting is un-possible.

  34. Many are posting that the gun control crowd will be claiming that stronger laws are needed to stop crazies from shooting people. I have no doubt they will. But anyone with more that 2 ounces of brain matter could easily counter that argument. If you accept their claim, why didn’t the law against murder stop him? Should the murder laws be made stronger so these liberals will stop murdering others? What law could have stopped this crime?

    If someone can’t figure out that laws don’t matter to criminals, and a crazy intent on committing murder will ignore any and all laws, they are just plain stupid. You can’t fix stupid.

  36. This is a legal firearm in New York. No pistol grip. Five round mag. Hell it didn’t even have any sights if the news report is to be believed. Although the report was from NBC News New York.

  37. The tragedy was that another gun free workplace/gun free zone simply creates a killing zone that merely guarantees unarmed victims.
    Perhaps this “doctor” would not have gone to the hospital to seek revenge on those whom he blamed for his being fired for sexual harassment IF some of the doctors, nurses and even janitors on each floor MIGHT have been armed with a snub nosed 38 or a Colt 45.

    The right to bear arms often deters crimes. “Gun free zones” attract violence because those seeking vengeance from people they blame for their failures.

  38. Again guns don’t kill people , people kill people ! Mental Health is the true issue here but you know the insurance companies don’t want anything to do with it nor do certain political camps. Always follow the money ! As long as certain political camps CAN’T make a dollar well you know what happens.

  39. Hmmmm…. some things not adding up. Take a look at some of the pics on http://heavy.com/news/2017/06/henry-bello-doctor-lebanon-hospital-bronx-gunman-shooter-suspect-dr-photos/.

    Another article states that “The mayhem ended when Bello set himself on fire, ran through a hallway, and shot himself in the head.”
    The tweeted image of what is supposed to be him shows no fire damage to clothes, etc, his head has no damage from a wound, and there is no blood around his head.

    Also, I can’t tell from the image of the rifle, but it appears to be a Kalifornia special. Can’t tell if it has bullet button or if it is one that doesn’t allow changing mag without opening the gun.

  41. Now isn’t that awesome? See how that New York Legal rifle save so many lives!
    Quite impressive right?

    Sarcasm intended.

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