Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams at an 8/24 Press Conference / Screenshot
Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams at a Press Conference on August 24th, 2022 / Screenshot

New York Governor Claims Social Media Check Law Will Flag ‘Radicalized’ Gun Owners

New York’s new concealed-carry law will use social media to determine if a person has become “radicalized” before granting them a permit.

At least, that’s how it will work according to New York Governor Kathy Hochul (D.). She made those remarks during a press conference on Wednesday held to tout the work performed by the Interstate Task Force on Illegal Guns thus far in 2022.

“I have called upon and am working closely with our Attorney General to identify what’s going on on social media, and those questions are now part of our background checks,” Hochul said. “So, just like in the old days, you’d talk to someone’s neighbor. Now you can talk to their neighbors online and find out whether or not this person has been spouting philosophies that indicate that they have been radicalized.”

“And that’s how we protect our citizens as well,” she added.

Hochul did not elaborate on what the criteria for the checks will be or which “philosophies” will be held to indicate a person is “radicalized.” Her office did not respond to a request for comment.

The Governor’s comments come amidst mounting criticism and multiple legal challenges over the inclusion of a social media check in the state’s updated gun-carry licensing law.

Almost immediately after the Supreme Court struck down the state’s previous concealed carry permitting law over the subjective nature of its “proper cause” requirement, the state retaliated with a broad-ranging replacement law. It contained a plethora of new restrictions and requirements for obtaining a New York license.

One new requirement mandates that a gun license applicant demonstrate “good moral character,” a standard critics have charged is as subjective as the one that was struck down by the Supreme Court in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen. To meet the “good moral character” requirement, an applicant must provide four character references and submit all social media handles from the previous three years for review by law enforcement officials.

Gun Owners of America argued this requirement violates the constitution and filed a lawsuit to block the new law from taking effect.

“Demanding a list of and potentially access to some vague class of ‘social media accounts of the applicant’ in order to issue a permit to carry a concealed weapon requires disclosure of protected First Amendment speech and press as a condition of exercising another protected constitutional right,” the group’s complaint reads.

A separate suit, filed by New York attorney Jonathan Corbett, similarly takes aim at the social media checks.

“This new law…requires applicants for a gun license to disclose all social media accounts they have used within the previous 3 years, thus forcing applicants to choose between their First Amendment rights to speak and associate anonymously (and their Fourteenth Amendment right to privacy) and their Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms,” his complaint states.

Governor Hochul has made cracking down on “hateful conduct” on social media platforms a priority following a mass shooting in Buffalo earlier this May. The shooter in that attack made several online posts outlining his desire to murder Black people as “an act of terrorism” to scare non-Whites into leaving the country. He also posted publicly about his desire to spark a race war. However, he would not have been affected by the new law since he never applied for a concealed carry license.

Following the attack, Hochul signed an executive order establishing a “Task Force on Social Media and Violent Extremism” in the Attorney General’s office and called upon the state police to establish a special unit dedicated to monitoring online extremism.

Join For Sober, Serious Firearms Reporting & Analysis

Free Weekly Newsletter

Get the most important gun news

Reload Membership

Monthly
$ 10 a Month
  • Exclusive Sunday Analysis Newsletter
  • Access to Exclusive Posts
  • Early Access to the Podcast
  • Commenting Privileges
  • Exclusive Question & Answer Sessions

Reload Membership

Yearly
$ 100 a Year
  • 12 Months for Price of 10
  • Exclusive Sunday Analysis Newsletter
  • Access to Exclusive Posts
  • Early Access to the Podcast
  • Commenting Privileges
  • Exclusive Question & Answer Sessions
Best Deal
Created by potrace 1.16, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2019

Share

Facebook
Twitter
Reddit
Email
Created by potrace 1.16, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2019

Comments From Reload Members

2 Responses

  1. It never ceases to amaze me how anti-gun advocates/politicians consistently overreach to “protect” law-abiding citizenry from eeevvvviiiilll guns while at the same time making their fellow Americans cower in fear from the skyrocketing crime in this country – caused by these same people.
    All you need to know about these people was spoken by the above-mentioned (unelected) Gov. Hochul (D NY) when asked about this idea when Bruen was handed down. She was asked by a reporter if Hochul had any statistics on crimes committed by lawful concealed carry holders (lower than crimes committed by LEOs, BTW). Hochul’s response: “I don’t need any statistics.”

    When will people realize that they are most easily governed when they’re afraid?

    We need to reach out and introduce people like Gov. Hochul to how firearms work AND get them to a gun range. I’ve done this a number of times with liberal friends. Just telling them how a cartridge is designed and what has to happen to get a bullet out of the barrel typically blows their mind. Put a gun in their hand – VOILA! Suddenly they get it. Works every time.

    1. That often is a good strategy for building bridges with folks who are skeptical of guns and gun ownership.

      In Hochul’s case however, I think her recent pivot toward aggressive gun control is simply a political calculation. After all, less than a decade ago she received an “A” rating and an endorsement from the NRA when she lost her Congressional race in 2012.

      Now that she holds a statewide office in a state like New York, cracking down on guns is a safer play politically.

Leave a Reply

Menu

Get your copy of our FREE weekly newsletter!