NEW YORK — New York Mayor Eric Adams and Gov. Kathy Hochul rolled out “gun-free zones” across New York on Wednesday in a bid to counteract the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent reversal of a longstanding state firearm restriction — but questions remain on how the anti-firearm areas will be policed.
The zones — which officially take effect Thursday after being approved by the state Legislature earlier this summer — encompass schools, hospitals and courthouses as well as bars, parks and a variety of other densely-populated public spaces, including Times Square. Anyone caught packing heat in the zones will be arrested and charged with a felony, Adams and Hochul said during a Wednesday morning news conference at her Manhattan office.
“The Supreme Court has taken dead aim at the safety of New Yorkers,” Adams said. “They’ve placed us in the line of fire, and we must respond accordingly. The radical decision that they made endangers us all.”
