A New York gun store proprietor who was merely making an attempt to assist his daughter’s faculty volleyball crew elevate cash for the upcoming season has come beneath anti-gun assault from a number of instructions.
Joe Oliver, who runs JJ Armory in Riverhead, introduced plans to raffle a Ruger firearm in late September, with funds raised going to the Riverhead Excessive College varsity volleyball crew, which incorporates his daughter. Nevertheless, based on a report at newsday.com, faculty officers have decried the raffle and pledged that they gained’t settle for the cash as a result of it could be raised by way of a gun raffle.
“Not at all would the district ever sanction any occasion to lift funds for a district sports activities crew or program that entails the providing of firearms or any weapon as a prize,” an announcement launched by the college mentioned. “As well as, the district brand was used with out the district’s permission, which is towards district coverage. The district has reached out to the enterprise proprietor to strongly convey our place on this matter and to make sure our groups aren’t used for such advertising and marketing functions by the corporate sooner or later. No funds that could be raised on this unsanctioned raffle shall be accepted by the district.”
College directors, notably in New York, are typically anti-gun to the core. However one has to surprise what the issue is with a easy gun raffle to assist a volleyball crew pay for journey and different bills. The raffle gun, a Ruger pistol-caliber carbine, would solely be transferred to the winner after passing the FBI background verify. Oliver was by no means going to only hand the gun to whoever gained the raffle with out following all relevant native, state and federal gun legal guidelines.
Regardless of the setback, Oliver mentioned he intends to proceed with the raffle and nonetheless plans to donate the funds. After the college district launched its assertion, he eliminated the college brand from the promotion.
Sadly, the State Gaming Fee is now additionally in search of its pound of flesh from Oliver, claiming that he can not legally raffle the firearm. Based on Gaming Fee spokesman Brad Maione, state regulation says solely “spiritual, charitable and nonprofit organizations” are allowed to carry video games and raffles to lift funds for charitable endeavors.
“This entity isn’t licensed,” Maione mentioned in response to a query from newsweek.com. “Any operation of a raffle [by an unauthorized company] is taken into account illegal—even when well-intentioned.”
Due to the strain, whether or not or not the raffle will truly be held stays to be seen. One factor is for certain: The Riverside Excessive College volleyball crew gained’t be receiving some funding they may have put to good use if the college district hadn’t engaged in its ridiculous, virtue-signaling anti-gun activism that makes no person safer.
