guyfawkes

Really? How?

Would NJ grant a NJ firearms purchaser ID to someone who was in staying in a hotel under a short term lease? Or would they consider you a nonresident? thanks

Was he arrested for having it in his hotel room or bringing it to the airport which technically did not fall under any of the NJ exclusions--your home, business, to and from the range, gunsmith, hunting field, Etc? This is what I would be terrified of--having the police & prosecutor decide it and the legal nightmare that would follow. I was considering bringing a shotgun and .22 rifle if I visited NJ and quickly decided that it was not a good idea.

Here's the problem: The Firearms Owners Protection Act applies if the guns are legal to own and legally owned at the point of start and the point of termination in an uninterrupted journey. That is how the guy got in trouble checking in handguns in the NJ airport after he spent the night in NJ--or at least that was their argument. Even if the guy drove in from a state where they were legal and tried to check them in the same officers would have likely still arrested him. The bigger problem seems to be that the laws in NJ are very convoluted and the law enforcement are often themselves confused. From reading this forum and other sources it seems like you can follow the law and still find yourself arrested and having to spend a lot of worry and lawyer fees. I was asking theoretically. In the past when I visited NJ I did not bring any firearms. If I visited again I don't think I would bring any. When I moved from NY to TX I made sure to drive through NJ without any stops or interrupted, followed the speed limit, and had the guns packed deeply. In reading your state laws and this site, it would seem that since a permit is only required to buy a firearm and not posses one, it should be okay for a visitor to the state to bring a NJ legal firearm as long as they possess it in a NJ legal manner--locked up and unloaded if being transported to and from the range, etc. Still, it seems that you could still get into trouble even if following the law.

In my situation I would be in the airport checking in a longarm as a visitor who had stayed in NJ overnight.

I am wondering what the laws are about people from out of state who might be visiting temporarily and want to bring a NJ legal longarm into the state. From what I could understand from reading your State laws, one must get a FOID to buy a firearm. But there is no requirement for people who already own firearms to get FOIDs. Thus, the consensus is that people who own firearms are exempt, but since it does not specifically mention this, I get the impression that some police officers believe that you must have a FOID to own any firearm. This could be a huge problem. Also I am wondering if I might get in trouble being a nonresident if I choose to fly out from a NJ airport with a NJ legal longarm. Gregg Revell got in trouble trying to fly out with a handgun in his checked luggage. I am wondering if it would be the same for a longarm or just handguns. thanks

Most home invasions begin as a ruse by someone at your door. If you don't know who it is, don't open it. Speak through the door, get a peephole, whatever. A criminal may use a ruse like saying he just hit your car, there was an accident in front of your house, etc. Use common sense and be careful.

So is it only handguns that must be transported to the range and back, and not all firearms? I came upon this thread when I found this forum, which I discovered when doing a google search on NJ gun laws. I found my way here after I read about the Brian Aitken case and I wanted to learn more about your laws. I previously lived in NYC where I owned licensed handguns and longarms and now live in TX. I've driven through NJ a few times and stayed there a few times. I think for the most part it is a beautiful state with great people where I would feel very at home living there, much more so than being a NYer living in TX--if it wasn't for NJ's firearm laws and and property taxes. My perspective as someone who does not live in NJ after reading through this forum is that the laws are not only strict but also very confusing, and that many of the police are quite confused about them. In fact, of all the states I am familiar with, your state's laws seem to be the most perplexing and frightening because it seems that you can find yourself getting in trouble without breaking any laws as in the case of the original poster in this thread. Anyway, I think this is a great forum and may have some general questions about your laws.