Category: New Jersey

From ANJRPC:

Today Governor Christie vetoed A2006 / S993, legislation (http://tinyurl.com/pxxpja3) that would have banned firearms magazines larger than 10 rounds and would have banned an entire class of popular .22 caliber semi-automatic rifles. The veto marks the end of the road for this legislation for the 2014-2015 session.
“After months of intense battle over this misguided legislation that won’t stop another crime or prevent another tragedy, we are grateful that Governor Christie has heard the voice of the outdoor community and ended the discussion,” said ANJRPC Executive Director Scott Bach. “The Governor clearly recognizes the difference between legislation that punishes violent criminals vs. legislation that targets the rights of law-abiding citizens.”

ANJRPC is alerting members to keep up the pressure on Gov. Chris Christie:

Please keep urging Governor Christie to veto A2006 / S993 (gun ban / mag ban). We must continue to mount a sustained campaign until the Governor acts. If he takes no action, the bill will automatically become law when the deadline passes in early July. Talking points on this legislation can be found here.

From yesterday’s Wall Street Journal:

Gun-control advocates and firearms industry representatives said Jersey City is the first municipality in the nation to demand such information. Questions include how firms dispose of old weapons and comply with background-check laws, and whether they make semiautomatic rifles—often called assault weapons—for sale to civilians, according to bid documents viewed by The Wall Street Journal.

The requirement went into effect earlier this year for gun and ammunition contracts worth at least $500,000 for Jersey City’s 800-member police force. The purpose: to try to change the firearms industry through the power of the city purse.

This is part of the efforts of the Bloomberg gun control organizations to attempt to strong-arm gun manufacturers and distributors into participating into their gun control schemes. I’d note that any manufacturer or distributor who goes along with Jersey City’s, or any other city’s requirements, will suffer the Smith & Wesson treatment. Smith & Wesson suffered under a massive boycott in the late 90s, early aughts, when their former British owners colluded with the Clinton Administration and Andrew Cuomo (then HUD director):

The two companies that are bidding for Jersey City business—Atlantic Tactical of Pennsylvania and Lawmen Supply Co. of Pennsauken, N.J.—are respected regional companies that sell to law enforcement but aren’t national household names.

Links to the businesses added by me. They look like Law Enforcement supply shops, so we may not have a whole lot of sway over their actions if they mostly don’t sell to civilians. I also don’t want to hang a company out to dry that truthfully answers “Why yes, we sell semi-automatic firearms to civilians if the fulfill the federal requirements and pass a background check, and yes, we do resell surplus police firearms under the same conditions. Here’s our bid, you can take it or leave it.” What we have to watch for are companies who agree to stop selling to civilians, or agree to destroy surplus firearms rather than resell them to civilians.

Some activists in New Jersey may want to familiarize themselves with New Jersey’s FOIA equivalent, if they have one, and start looking into what they are asking, and what answers are being provided. We have to make sure that cities who do this are punished, by no one wanting to do business with them.

Jersey City’s extra forms for getting purchase permits are ruled illegal. The plaintiff filed an application using only the required forms, but the police denied him arguing that his non-compliance with the additional extra lawful requirements made him “a ‘threat to public health, safety and welfare’ and had not demonstrated ‘good repute within the community’.” The Court rejected that argument, and more importantly, rebuked the lower court who played the typical Jersey game of not allowing gun owners to make a proper case. From the case:

McGovern appeared pro se at the hearing. The judge repeatedly declined to allow him to present evidence supporting his attempted legal argument that Jersey City had demanded unauthorized information as part of the application. The judge also would not allow McGovern to cross-examine Brusgard about his qualifications to determine who may receive a handgun permit or his knowledge of the law in that regard. The judge stated that the only purpose of the hearing was for McGovern to prove he was not disqualified under the N.J.S.A. 2C:58-3 for a handgun permit. The Assistant Prosecutor representing Jersey City also repeatedly objected to any attempt by McGovern to develop information pertinent to his legal positions and arguments.

In this case, McGovern argued that the court had in fact reversed the burden, placing it on him to prove he was qualified rather than on the state to prove he was unqualified. Eventually we need to attack New Jersey’s entire regulatory regime for firearms, but for now this is a significant victory, given how rampant abuses like this are in the Garden State.