Shelter Island pistol registrations on the rise as State passes new gun laws

The number of Shelter Islanders holding pistol licenses rose by four in the first six months of this year, from 78 in all of 2021, to 82, according to the Shelter Island Police Department and the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office.

The previous highest number of Islanders holding pistol licenses was 84 in 2019.

There is no regulation on purchasing rifles or shotguns in New York State, except in New York City.

Automatic weapons with high capacity magazines — so-called “assault weapons” — have been banned in New York State since January 2013. The legislation was spurred by the massacre of 26 people, including 20 school children, in Newtown, Conn. on Dec. 14, 2012.

All weapons in that class purchased before the passage of the law have to be registered with the New York State Police Department, and 44,160 assault weapons have been registered since the law took effect.

Since June 3, the Reporter has asked several times for the number of assault weapons registered by individuals in the 11964 and 11965 Zip codes, and has yet to receive an accounting. A spokesperson for the State Police said it takes time to come up with the number.

Currently, as Congress attempts to pass stricter gun control legislation after an unprecedented number of mass shootings, including the racist attack that killed 10 people in Buffalo, and 19 schoolchildren in Texas, New York State has acted, passing new laws. On Monday Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) signed several gun control bills, including raising the age for purchasing semi-automatic weapons from 18 to 21.

The new legislation bans most residents from buying bullet-resistant body armor. It also updates the State’s “red-flag law,” which allows police departments or family members to ask for a court order to cut off access to firearms from persons whom the court deems a danger to others or themselves.