New York's Tough Gun Law Needs Exemption for Movies

New York sought to combat violence by rushing the nation's toughest gun-control measure into law after the Connecticut school shootings that killed 26 people, but the state is now carving out an exemption to make sure movie and TV producers can stage running gun battles on Manhattan streets. "We spend a lot of money in the state bringing movie production here ... so obviously we would want to facilitate that," said Gov. Andrew Cuomo. While movie and TV producers could use fake guns that wouldn't be subject to the new law, Cuomo said the industry wants "certainty." The revised law would allow them to use real weapons without real ammunition.

"There's no reason not to make a change like that to give an industry comfort, especially when it's an industry we want to do business in the state," said the governor. The Hollywood exemption is just one of the revisions planned for the state law. Others would allow police officers to keep their high-capacity handguns and to take a loaded gun on school grounds without permission from school officials. However, the need for a "cleanup" bill also means the fight over the law may not be over after all. An estimated 10,000 opponents of the legislation are expected to descend on Albany tomorrow to take advantage of an unexpected second shot at a law they see as unconstitutional. (More strange stuff stories.)