New York Post columnist Rikki Schlott is raising awareness about a New York law that doesn’t allow pepper spray to be mailed to any city or county in the state.
State law allows pepper spray to be used and carried for self-defense but doesn’t allow it to be shipped to a New York address. The only type of spray that can be mailed directly to the state is animal mace.
Schlott says the law directly puts New Yorkers at risk because they aren’t able to defend themselves from potential acts of violence.
A New York law doesn’t allow pepper spray to be shipped to the state. (iStock)
She reached out to Mayor Eric Adams’ office for comment about why the law is in effect and said a spokesperson told her they don’t want criminals getting their hands on it and using it as a weapon.
“I would say my cute little bedazzled can of mace is more suitable for me. And if a criminal wanted to get their hands on a next-day Amazon delivery of a machete, they quite literally could. So this is a ridiculous double standard. This is very basic, fundamental self-defense that all women, all elderly people, all vulnerable New Yorkers should have the right to have and to deploy in an emergency,” she explained Wednesday on “Jesse Watters Primetime.” “And thankfully, twice in one year I’ve had it on my person when I’ve been harassed by people on the street.”
Schlott told host Jesse Watters a homeless man chased her into moving traffic over the weekend and groped her, but she was able to quickly get away by brandishing the pepper spray.
“It could have gone south. It could have gone sideways in a way that I’m very grateful it didn’t. I didn’t have to deploy my mace. But as a small woman, that’s really the only thing that I can do to protect myself. And I carry it with me everywhere,” she said.
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“My dad lives in New Jersey. All my friends in New York ship their mace to my dad, and then he has to come in with their Amazon packages because that’s what we’ve come to in this city. And the authorities can’t protect us and we’re not allowed to protect ourselves, which is absolutely ridiculous.”
The Post columnist added that she does not want to carry a knife or gun because she would have to get close to the assailant to defend herself.
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“Once you’re at that point, if you’re a small person who knows what’s going to happen, This is a way to be safe at a safe distance, to disarm someone and to get a chance to run away. So I think that this is just a very fundamental right that New Yorkers are being deprived of,” Schlott stated.