Gun Licensees and Privacy in the Empire State

The Daily News, a New York City newspaper, recently filed a lawsuit to compel the New York City Police Department (NYPD) and licensing officials to release the full names, the type of license, and the residential zip codes of individuals who had been issued a firearm license or renewal in 2018, and who had not been granted an exemption from disclosure.

According to the complaint, the proceeding arises out of the newspaper’s “ongoing commitment to quality public affairs journalism on issues including crime, gun control and policing. In particular, reporting about firearm licensing informs the public debate on critically important issues like gun control, gun rights and the scourge of gun violence in America…”The complaint fails to indicate how this information will be used, apart from ruling out “any commercial purpose or solicitation.”

The NYPD provided 132 names but resisted further disclosure citing operational, invasion of privacy, and other reasons. Police officials filed affidavits testifying that, due to safety concerns, officers’ residential addresses and other personal information are never disclosed to the public. One affidavit referred to the case of Victor Kingsley, who attempted to send an explosive device to an NYPD officer after finding incomplete personal information about the officer in internet searches. The device was delivered to a neighbor, who was killed.