The existence of the tip line is not nonsense, but some nonsense about it is making the rounds of the blogosphere.
According to
this story from North Country Public Radio, the tip line was set up over a year ago, with the goal of encouraging people to report illegal guns used in crimes. The story says that the New York State Association of Police Chiefs has been talking about reviving the tipline this week -- including sending out an email reminding members about it. NCPR received a letter from the police chiefs' association that included the following:
The e-mail was the result of a series of ongoing meetings to deal with reducing guns used in crimes in New York State. It had nothing to do with the NY SAFE ACT. In our most recent meeting on Monday afternoon we talked about reviving this tip line and informing our members about it by sending out a message and scheduling a conference call to discuss it.
The timing of their message is interesting, but the rumors that this is new, and related to the SAFE Act, are false. Here's a link to
the original press release, dated Feb. 18, 2012, in which Gov. Cuomo announced the tip line as part of a "Comprehensive Initiative to Reduce Gun Violence."
