EAST GREENBUSH, N.Y. (AP) — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Wednesday she wants to raise to 21 the age to legally purchase the type of weapons used in the mass shootings in Buffalo and Texas, and possibly other firearms as well.
“I don’t want 18-year-olds to have guns, at least not in the state of New York,” Hochul said at a press briefing.
The Democrat said she wants to work with the state Legislature to raise the legal purchasing age for AR-style rifles “at minimum … but I’m going to take a look at everything.”
Law enforcement officials say the 18-year-old gunman who killed 19 children and two teachers at a Texas elementary school Tuesday had an AR-style rifle. So did the gunman who killed 10 Black people at a supermarket in Buffalo earlier this month.
“How does an 18-year-old purchase an AR-15 in the state of New York, the state of Texas?” Hochul asked. “That person is not old enough to buy a legal drink.”
Hochul, a Buffalo native, appeared to get emotional at the briefing ahead of a meeting of a multi-state task force on illegal guns.
“Just this morning, as we’re all reeling with the pain, I’m asking myself as governor: Am I supposed to just leave all the flags at half-mast? They’re still at half-mast from Buffalo,” said Hochul.
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