School District Vows Not to Accept Proceeds From Rifle Raffle

A Long Island, New York gun store owner is trying to raffle off a rifle to raise money for a local high school volleyball team, but he’s running into a blizzard of opposition from the state’s Gaming Commission and the school district that stands to benefit from the raffle. 

Joe Oliver, who runs JJ Armory in Riverhead, New York, plans on raffling off a Ruger Pistol-Caliber Carbine later this month, with the proceeds going to the Riverhead High School varsity volleyball team that counts Oliver’s daughter as a member. As Newsday reports, though, Riverhead school officials have come out against the raffle, saying they won’t accept any money raised through the rifle raffle. 

“Under no circumstances would the district ever sanction any event to raise funds for a district sports team or program that involves the offering of firearms or any weapon as a prize,” the statement continued. “In addition, the district logo was used without the district’s permission, which is against district policy. The district has reached out to the business owner to strongly convey our position on this matter and to ensure our teams are not used for such marketing purposes by the company in the future. No funds that may be raised in this unsanctioned raffle will be accepted by the district.”

Oliver says he’s removed the school district’s logo from promotional materials, but he still plans on going through with the raffle itself. Now, though, he’s also going to have to talk to the New York Gaming Commission, which was apparently alerted to Oliver’s raffle and has declared it illegal. 

 State law says only “religious, charitable and nonprofit organizations” are allowed to hold games and raffles to raise funds for charitable endeavors, gaming commission spokesman Brad Maione said in an email, responding to a question from Newsday.

JJ Armory in Riverhead is raffling off a semiautomatic weapon to raise money for the Riverhead High School volleyball team. The drawing is to be held Sept. 20.

“This entity is not authorized,” Maione said. “Any operation of a raffle [by an unauthorized company] is considered unlawful — even if well-intentioned.”

Oliver could always go through a third-party that is a charitable or nonprofit organization, but even then he’s been informed that the district won’t take money that’s been tainted by any relationship to a firearm. 

Cindy Clifford, of the Heart of Riverhead Civic Association, said the raffle is “insane” and added she planned to contact school officials.

She said the civic group had a preplanned meeting scheduled for Saturday morning with Riverhead schools Superintendent Robert M. Hagan.

“I think there are some things that are so inherently wrong with this,” Clifford said in a phone interview. “You just wonder who’s making these decisions.”

I mean, you don’t have to wonder. Joe Oliver’s made the decision to hold the raffle, and Hagan’s made the decision not to accept any of the proceeds. 

What, though, is inherently wrong with this? Oliver is raffling off a product that is legal for him to sell in the state of New York, and the winner of the raffle must pass a background check before taking possession of the carbine. 

The district’s statement makes it clear that any fundraiser that offers “firearms or any weapon as a prize” is a no-go, but doesn’t explain why. How is this any different than raffling off a spa day, a leaf blower, or an electric bicycle? 

I wonder if Riverhead’s position also includes fundraisers where firearms might be used, like a sporting clays tournament or 3-gun shoot? Are those events just as problematic, or is there a meaningful difference since it wouldn’t involve giving someone a gun? 

There are plenty of things in the word to be concerned about these days. A local FFL raffling off a carbine to raise money for a high school volleyball team shouldn’t be one of them. But if the district won’t budge on Oliver’s attempt to raise money for his daughter’s team, I’d suggest he donate the proceeds to the New York State High School Clay Target League instead. I’m sure they’d be happy to get his support, and as a non-profit corporation they might even be able to run the raffle without running afoul of the state’s Gaming Commission. 

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