New York City designates Times Square a ‘gun-free zone’
Amid the bright lights and electronic billboards across New York’s Times Square, city authorities are posting new signs proclaiming the bustling crossroads a “Gun Free Zone.”
The sprawling Manhattan tourist attraction is one of scores of “sensitive” places — including parks, churches and theaters — that will be off limits for guns under a sweeping new state law going into effect Thursday. The measure, passed after a U.S. Supreme Court decision in June expanded gun rights, also sets stringent standards for issuing concealed carry permits.
With 50 million tourists flocking to the area every year, Times Square is one of the most densely packed areas in the country and a prime spot, New York authorities say, to be designated as a “Gun Free Zone” under a new state law taking into effect Thursday that attempts to limit where guns can be legally carried.