ALBANY, N.Y. (WRGB) — Five minors are facing charges following an assault on employees at a Subway restaurant in Albany, where one juvenile allegedly fired a flare gun into the air during the incident on Sunday. This marks the second flare gun incident in Albany in recent days.
Police reported that a 12-year-old boy is charged with criminal possession of a weapon, reckless endangerment, and assault. The boy was part of a group of minors, consisting of two girls and three boys, who were reportedly disruptive inside the Subway on North Pearl Street. When asked to leave, they allegedly started an argument with two employees, which escalated outside. Police said the minors punched and kicked the workers before the 12-year-old fired a flare into the sky and fled. They were arrested shortly after at the Riverfront Parking Garage.
On July 4th, a flare gun was also involved in a shooting near Empire State Plaza that injured four people and set a home on fire. Albany Police Chief Brendan Cox noted an increase in violence among teens after a string of shootings and incidents since the July 4th Holiday. “Obviously there’s a clear uptick in violence, specifically gun violence, both with handguns and flare guns in our teen population,” said Cox.
“We are seeing more youngsters getting a hold of flare gun and using them to shoot a flare in the air, to create a disturbance or in a lot of instances, they may not be converting it to a firearm, but they’re making it look like a firearm, so other people think they are carrying a firearm, and that’s very dangerous,” said Attorney Greg Rinckey, a founding partner at Tully Rinckey PLLC. Rinckey explained that while it is not illegal to own a flare gun in New York State, converting it into a firearm is a felony.
“So, you can own a flare gun in New York State if you’re going to use it for the correct purposes, meaning like if you’re buying it for a boat or for a camping. It’s not illegal to own a flare gun in New York. The problem becomes is when you convert a flare gun into a firearm. And that’s what happened in one of the instances where the flare gun was converted and was capable of firing a projectile shot. So basically, you’re then taking a flare gun and you’re making it a firearm. In New York State, that conversion is a felony.”
“The other instance where the young individual shot the flare gun up in the air, that’s not a crime of firing a firearm, you fired a flare gun up in the air,” Rinckey added. Now, depending on where he fired it and if he just fired it in the air, probably not a crime. However, if he fired it in a building or tried to start a fire, now he could definitely be charged with a crime.”
Rinckey says flare guns used to be considered firearms in New York State, but the law was changed several years ago. Rinckey says flare guns are sold without a permit or background check, though some stores check for ID.
