BELLEVUE, WA – The Second Amendment Foundation announced this morning that it has filed an amended complaint in federal district court against New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the City of New York over exorbitant gun licensing fees, adding two additional plaintiffs who came forward asking to be part of the legal action.
SAF Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb said with these additional plaintiffs, there are now seven private citizens who have joined SAF and the New York State Rifle and Pistol Association in the lawsuit.
“We are being overwhelmed with calls following yesterday’s announcement about the lawsuit,” Gottlieb acknowledged. “We want to assure everyone that they do not need to be part of the lawsuit in order to benefit from a victory.
“SAF truly appreciates the wave of enthusiasm and support from New York gun owners,” he continued. “We need to move forward right now, and if people would like to support our lawsuit with a tax-exempt contribution to SAF, we would welcome that.”
The lawsuit was filed Tuesday in Federal District Court for the Southern District of New York. Plaintiffs are represented by attorney David Jensen.
“Almost immediately after the lawsuit was filed,” Gottlieb said, “our phones started ringing as people wanted to join the lawsuit. We simply cannot take on more plaintiffs at this point and further delay the process.
“We do not want New York’s outrageous $340 license fee to continue one more day than it has to,” he explained. “Imagine if this was a poll tax. How many New Yorkers would be storming city hall right now, demanding their voting rights? The city’s excessive gun licensing fee amounts to the same egregious assault on every citizen’s right to self-protection in their own home.”