What’s News, Breaking: Thursday, December 1, 2022
JUDGE SUSTAINS KEY PARTS OF CONCEALED CARRY GUN LAW: A federal judge in New York City on Tuesday maintained key portions of New York’s Concealed Carry Improvement Act on Tuesday—including the requirement that applicants provide their social media accounts, character references, and complete an enhanced 18-hour level of training in order to be licensed. Judge Lorna Schofield of the U.S. District Court-Southern District of New York ruled against Jonathan Corbett, a part-time Brooklyn resident who had sued New York State to toss the above-mentioned segments, on the grounds that his argument lacked standing because law took effect before he applied for his gun license, according to news reports.
Governor Kathy Hochul and Attorney General Letitia James released a joint statement on Thursday (excerpted here) on Judge Schofield’s decision, saying “Challenges to New York’s gun laws undermine public safety and increase the presence of guns in our communities. We will continue to fiercely defend the constitutionality of our laws and protect New Yorkers from these baseless attacks.”
✰✰✰
FEDERAL CONVICTION IN BRIBERY AND DRUG SMUGGLING CASE: Today, a federal jury in Brooklyn convicted James Albert of conspiracy to violate the Travel Act and conspiracy to distribute controlled substances while he was incarcerated at the George R. Vierno Center at Rikers Island. James Albert was part of a scheme to bribe correction officers to smuggle illegal drugs and other contraband into the jail for sale to other inmates.