“GOING 15 ROUNDS”
Photo by Genghis
PATTY’S BERETTA: Can no longer go 15 rounds.
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My wife Patty and I each received the following letter:
POLICE DEPARTMENT
LICENSE DIVISION
THE CITY OF NEW YORK
DEAR NEW YORK CITY HANDGUN PERMIT HOLDERS:
Many license holders own handguns with magazines that have a capacity to hold over ten (10) rounds that were previously legal because they were manufactured prior to September 13, 1994. Those magazines are now illegal. As a result, in order to renew their licenses, many license holders must surrender or permanently modify their magazines.
If you own such a magazine, the License Division will accept reasonable proof, such as a receipt for the purchase of a magazine that is in compliance, along with proof of disposal of the prior magazine, or certification from a license gunsmith indicating that the magazine has been permanently modified to be in compliance with the new law.
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This letter speaks for itself. This piece of ridiculously irrational legislation was pushed through the New York State legislature, as an overreaction to the shooting at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. I’m not here to debate the merits or faults of the new New York law—because it is what it is, and we have to comply as law-abiding citizens.
Even though Patty and I each received the same letter, it doesn’t apply to me—only to Patty. The letter was apparently sent “shotgun-style” to every single handgun owner in New York City, regardless of whether said owners owned guns that held magazines with more than ten bullets, or not. I own a Colt Government Model .45 ACP pistol and a Colt Commander .45 ACP pistol, both of which only hold 7 rounds in their magazines. 7 rounds is fine with me, although others may disagree for their own reasons.
Patty however, besides owning a Colt Commander .45 ACP (7 rounds), a Smith & Wesson .357 Magnum (6 rounds)—also owns a Beretta 92FS 9mm semi-auto which holds 15 rounds in its magazines. Scrambling online to find a vendor that had 10 round magazines in stock, proved mostly futile—most didn’t have any available. One that we found did have ’em in stock, couldn’t ship ’em to New York by law.
That left the modification by a certified gunsmith option, as the only viable option. Luckily for us, we knew of a qualified gunsmith here in NYC who could do the job. Here’s the strange twist (I know, it’s confusing) about the law as it applies to the Beretta:
You might’ve noticed from the NYPD letter, that NYC is allowing 10 round magazines, even though it’s illegal (it is) to have more than 7 rounds in a magazine. NYC made this strange accommodation—allowing 10 rounders—because nobody makes magazines for the Beretta, with any less than a 10 round capacity. Owners of Beretta 92s are allowed to own 10 round magazines, as long as they’re not loaded with more than 7 rounds.
I’ll tell ya what. As a fan of Colt 1911s, this law didn’t bother me personally. As such, I’ve always believed that you didn’t need more than 7 rounds, for self-defense. The .45 is a hearty round with great stopping power, much moreso than the 9mm. Later.
FINITO
GOING THE DISTANCE 