NJ2AS News

NJ2AS FILES AMICUS BRIEF IN PANTANO NJ SUPREME COURT CASE October 2, 2013 On Tuesday, October 1, 2013, the New Jersey Second Amendment Society (NJ2AS) filed a "friend of the Court" brief in a State Supreme Court appeal challenging New Jersey's "justifiable need" requirement to obtain a Permit to Carry a Handgun. The Plaintiff, Richard Pantano, is being represented by Evan Nappen, noted civil rights attorney and close friend and supporter of NJ2AS. Click this link to read the entire post and view the brief. http://www.nj2as.com/blog?mode=PostView&bmi=1403707

For the latest news from NJ2AS, please visit our blog by clicking on this link. Recent posts include the July Monthly Newsletter, the announcement about Evan Nappen's "Justifiable Need" appeals case, and comments by NJ2AS President Frank Fiamingo regarding Sheila Oliver's comment on the Constitution being "irrelevant". To stay up to date with what's going on, please visit www.nj2as.com and join or sign up for the email alerts.

As stated before, nothing can go further at this point until the bill is signed into or allowed to become law.

This plan is ongoing. Given the recent developments in the courts, we are on hold with moving forward right now, but the plan is far from dead.

Sponsors get their business' listed on the site. Platinum sponsors are now guaranteed an ad spot in our news letters and news briefs. Gold sponsors are rotated in the news letters and news briefs on a monthly basis. We are working on ways to further enhance the benefits of sponsorship for the generous donations they provide.

According to the attorneys, the bill has to be signed into law or allowed to become law by the 45 day rule before action can be taken. We are waiting for clarification regarding the 45 day rule. When the legislature takes their summer break, the "count down" apparently stops till they reconvene. Once we get clarification on this, we will update everyone.

It is a warning that after a review by an attorney, they violated their rules and opened themselves up to possible legal action.

The legal action is a joint effort between NJ2AS, ANJRPC, and NJOA. All avenues are being explored.

From my point of view, "justifiable need" is simply I like being alive!

From the NJ2AS Facebook Page: *** UPDATE ON CCW APPLICATIONS!!! OK, here are a few things I want to say. First, a LOT has occurred since we first started to address the problem of the CCW application statistics being TOTALLY unrepresentative of reality. For NJ to state that the vast majority of CCW applications are approved is a "prevarication of the highest magnitude" (BIG LIE) and we *ALL* know it. They are able to manipulate the statistics by assuring you that if you are not a law enforcement officer, you are going to be turned down. Couple that with the fear that *IF* you are turned down it could affect your life in some negative way and most people will simply decide not to apply. We would like to know what the statistics would tell the Nation about NJ if all the people who wished to carry a concealed firearm for personal defense actually *DID* apply. As we know, the statistics would invariably reverse direction with the OVERWHELMING majority of applications being turned down due to "lack of justifiable need" (defense of your precious life and family is *NOT* considered "justifiable need" in our great state). We have been able to determine that being denied a permit by NJ (simply for lack of "justifiable need") will NOT result in you being denied a non-resident CCW in Florida. Utah does not require you to answer that question if you already have a license from Florida, so that problem is effectively solved. Here is the problem. We are STILL trying to get a definitive answer as to whether or not being denied a CCW in NJ will affect your life in other ways. For instance, will it make it more difficult or impossible to obtain a Handgun Purchase Permit? Could it interfere with your ability to obtain certain jobs or clearances. You might think that it is easy to get those answers. I can assure you that it is not. I cannot ask people to proceed with the next step (actual submission of the application) until I have real reliable answers to these questions. I most certainly would like to hear from anyone who has real-life, verifiable answers to some of these questions. Please contact me at [email protected] if you have that kind of information to share (either negative or positive), or share it here. Once we are comfortable that the consequences do not outweigh the benefits, we will then organize and execute the next step. I just felt that you were entitled to an explanation in the meantime. I don't want people to think that this is all a black box. Usually, if I don't share something right away, the reason is that there are reasons not to telescope our plans. In this case, I don't think it will make a difference, and it is probably better if there are as many people as possible looking for answers. I would especially like to hear from Security Company Employers, Those familiar with Military Clearance FFLs and any employer whose company has a policy on this. Thank you all for your help and cooperation. Frank Jack Fiamingo President - NJ2AS

June 24, 2013 - TRENTON The New Jersey Second Amendment Society, together with other Garden State based Second Amendment -related organizations has served legal notice on Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver. This warning states that impending action on several firearm-related bills would be invalid and subject to legal challenge as a result of illegal vote-rigging in an Assembly committee earlier this month. The rules that have been violated are as follows: Assembly Rule 12:3: After a roll call vote has commenced, no motion is in order until the results are announced by the Speaker.Assembly Rule 10:6: Each committee may adopt rules for its operation and conduct of business, including rules governing the operation and conduct of any subcommittee, provided the rules are consistent with these rules.Assembly Rule 10:22. Bills and resolutions reported by any committee in violation of these rules shall not be considered for third reading or final action. On June 6, 2013, during a hearing of the Assembly Law and Public Safety Committee, a gun control package (bill A4182) failed during the roll call vote. Committee Chairman Charles Mainor aborted the roll call vote after 9 of 11 votes had been cast. NJ Assembly rule 12:3 states that once a roll call vote begins, no further action can be taken until the results are announced. Instead of completing the vote, ASM Mainor announced he was holding the bill, despite Republican committee members’ objections. In further violation of Assembly rules, bill A4182 was then transferred to the Assembly Budget Committee where a Democrat majority could control the outcome. Eleven days later, the Budget Committee voted to release the bill. The bill in question is A4182, a 42-page omnibus piece of legislation that restricts all legal firearms owners with no impact on crime or criminals. This bill voids all current firearms ID cards and replaces them with either a privacy invading endorsement on the holder’s NJ drivers license, or other form of identification yet to be determined. It suspends Second Amendment rights absent proof of firearms training, imposes a 7-day waiting period for handgun purchases by licensed firearms owners, eliminates private sales between licensed firearms owners, and creates a registry of all ammunition purchases and long gun sales by licensed gun owners. This all comes at an undisclosed cost to tax payers estimated to be in the tens of millions of dollars. Democratic leaders have described bill A4182 as a "national model". Legislators from both parties have questioned the purpose of the bill and expressed serious concerns about it. Law- abiding NJ firearms owners have universally condemned the legislation.

Still ongoing. Update will be posted shortly.

NJ2AS is pleased to announce that our friends at the Firearms Policy Coalition are sponsoring a "Call to Action" here in the Garden State, and nation wide. Click on the links below to send a message to Governor Christie urging him to veto any anti-second amendment bills that make it to his desk. For every letter sent through the FPC, you will automatically be entered into the "Stop The Gun Control Madness" contest. Contest rules can be found by clicking here. Please see below for more details on the contest. Now is the time to take action! Dear American Patriot, Our friends in New Jersey -- and the Second Amendment -- need your help today. You can make a big difference in less than 2 minutes -- please keep reading to find out how. The New Jersey Legislature is furiously working and scheming up ways to ramrod a pile of horrible new rights-infringing gun control bills through in the coming days. We can stop these outrageous bills from going into law by asking Governor Chris Christie to send them all back to the Legislature -- stamped with a big “VETO”! That's why I'm asking you to take 90 seconds, right now, and defend Second Amendment gun rights by sending Governor Christie a message using our simple (and free!) outreach form at StopNJGunControl.org. Maybe you're thinking, “Gun control like this would never happen to us – we live in a free state! We'll never need to worry about whatever crazy gun control laws New Jersey or California pass this year.” If you are, you’re dead wrong. Just ask gun owners and pro-gun businesses in Colorado -- like Magpul -- how fast the political seas can turn on us... drowning your Second Amendment rights under a tidal wave of heavily-slanted mainstream media, party-line political posturing, and billionaire anti-gun PAC backers like New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Freedom-destroying laws like those we’re up against in New Jersey become models for anti-gun policies in other states... waiting in the shadows for just the right moment to pounce on and strip away your Constitutional rights. Gun control doesn’t stop at any state's borders and neither should our help. Please, friends, stand with us today and TAKE ACTION to defend the Constitution atStopNJGunControl.org. Oh, and one more thing: every message you send to Governor Christie through StopNJGunControl.org (and all of our legislative Issues pages at FPC) between now and July 31, 2013, automatically enters you into our "Stop The Gun Control Madness" contest, where the winner will pick from three tremendous firearm packages including a Kahr PM9 handgun and Comp-Tac hoster, a Sig M400 Enhanced AR-15 rifle and Aimpoint H1 optic, and a Benelli Super Black Eagle II shotgun. The more you help us fight back against anti-gun bills, the better your chances of winning one of these guns! We have an opportunity to send Governor Christie a crystal-clear message: our rights are not up for debate . Just visit StopNJGunControl.orgto TAKE ACTION right now, then go spread the word to all of your friends and family! We can make ours a Coalition of 1,000,000+ Americans fighting to preserve our Founder’s vision for America in New Jersey, but ONLY IF WE ALL ACT NOW. Won’t you stand with us and show Governor Christie that we aren’t going to let the Legislature take away our Constitutional rights without a fight? It really only takes 90 seconds or less, my friends -- StopNJGunControl.org is how and where you can do just that. Thank you in advance for caring enough to help us defend freedom and our Constitution. In Liberty, Brandon Combs Managing Director Firearms Policy Coalition

We have discovered that anit-constitutional-rights groups being led by State Senator Loretta Weinberg and U.S Congressman Bill Pascrell are organizing busloads of anti-Bill of Rights followers to protest our Right to Keep and Bear Arms in the state of New Jersey and across our nation. We cannot allow this to stand. We MUST show up in force to demonstrate our continued commitment to our Lives, our Loved ones and our Liberty. Please sign up for a bus as soon as humanly possible. We need to now how many buses to provide and where to state them. TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!!. Click the link below to register. If you don't see a bus close to you please check back later as more buses will be added as we find staging location. If you don't see a bus near you yet please go to the event page to register that you plan to attend. Once your bus location is posted you can then go back in and register for the bus. . http://nj2as.com/Admin/default.aspx Frank Jack Fiamingo ...

RECAP OF THE WINSLOW MEETING On Thursday, March 28, the monthly meeting of the New Jersey Second Amendment Society was held at the South Jersey Shooting Club in Winslow, NJ. The room was filled to capacity, thank you to all who attended. We would also like to welcome to all of our new members. NEW HAPPENINGS AT THE NEW JERSEY SECOND AMENDMENT SOCIETY NJ2AS Director of Media Relations Rich Petkevis opened the meeting. He announced that NJ2AS now has 19 executive members heading up various projects and responsibilities for the organization. As part of the growth of NJ2AS and the demand for representatives to speak to various organization's events, there will be times when executive members may have to conduct the meetings. A list of the executive members names, area of responsibility, and email addresses will be published atwww.nj2as.com and distributed through the email list. NJ2AS Director of Shows and Merchandise Scott Heckler announced that new NJ2AS merchandise will be available soon. T-shirts, lapel pins, hats, and sweat shirts will be offered. The web store is being revamped. We will keep everyone updated as this process moves forward. GUEST SPEAKER Special guest speaker, Sheriff Frank Balles addressed the crowd and stated he is an avid supporter of the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, and supports the citizen's right to carry. Frank Bales is the current Sheriff of Atlantic County, NJ, president of the NJ Sheriff's Association, and running for NJ State Senate in District 2 against Senator Jim Whelan. NJ2AS PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS NJ2AS President Frank Fiamingo also addressed the crowd and announced that NJ2AS, along with the ANJRPC, NJOA, and NRA representatives were invited by NJ State Senate President Steve Sweeney to sit down with the Senate leadership and review the proposed firearms legislation that recently cleared the NJ Assembly. The pro second amendment organizations were asked their opinion on the bills. All organizations stood together and stated their opposition to the bills that stand to do nothing but place an additional burden on the law abiding citizens of NJ. No further discussions were held. It is important to continue to contact your senators and voice your opposition to the legislation. President Fiamingo also mentioned to the membership to be prepared for possibly another rally in Trenton in the near future. No date has been set. Where as over 1,000 supporters of liberty stood together on a cold, wet February morning, a second rally will need to bring 10,000 plus together. We will update everyone as things develop. GENERAL INFORMATION NJ is up to 76 anti firearm bills! Since January of this year, the assembly has been continually assaulting the rights of the law abiding citizen. We ask that you continue to contact your representatives and voice opposition to these bills. An updated list of the proposed bills will be available on the web site soon. Please be advised that www.nj2as.com is in the process of "spring cleaning" in an effort to consolidate information and provide a more informative interface. Most of the changes are happening in the "news" and "resources" sections of the site. The web site will not be shut down during this process. We would like to remind everyone that you can sign up for free email alerts at www.nj2as.com for the latest happenings from the New Jersey Second Amendment Society and information on NJ Firearms Legislation. Please encourage your friends, family, and anyone else you can think of to join the NJ2AS or at least sign up for the free email alerts. UPCOMING EVENTS For information on all NJ2AS events, please visit www.nj2as.com and click on the events link. NJ2AS President Frank Jack Fiamingo is scheduled to appear at an event being held on the steps of the Capitol honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on Thursday April 4, 2013. The topic will be “Defense in the inner city”. All are invited to attend. NJ2AS President Frank Jack Fiamingo is scheduled to appear as a guest on "NJ Capitol Report with Steve Adubato and Rafael Pi Roman" on Tuesday, April 9th. Also invited is Ms. Nicola Bocour of CeasefireNJ. Many of the recent events affecting lawful firearms ownership will be discussed. There will be a focus on the conflict between the approach taken by the Democrat leadership versus the more constitutional approach adopted by New Jersey’s lawful firearm’s owners. NJ2AS is looking for volunteers for the Mt. Bethel Volunteer Fire Company Gun Show in Mt. Bethel, PA on April 14, 2013. People are needed to help at the NJ2AS table to distribute information. The next monthly meeting of the New Jersey Second Amendment Society will be held on April 17,2013 at the Washington Fire House in Warren County, NJ. (100 Belvidere Avenue, Washington, NJ). Special guests will be Members of the NJ 4-H State Shooting Team. The NJ2AS High School Writing Contest came to an end March 30, 2013. One lucky winner will get to participate in the Gun For Hire "Test Drive". First, Second, and Third place winners will have their essay published on the NJ2AS web site and receive a NJ2AS T-shirt.

The NJ2AS web site is going under some renovations! We are rearranging, consolidating, and adding information. If you happen to visit the page, you will notice some items have disappeared from the main menu on the left side of the page. Many items have been relocated to the "Resources" and some to the "News" sections. This is an ongoing process and we will make a formal announcement detailing the changes when we are done. Thanks for your patience as we work to improve the NJ2AS web site.

You guys are fast! I just came on to post this! Thank you very much! And everyone is invited to the event!

NJ2AS MARCH MONTHLY MEETING ANNOUNCEMENT The monthly meeting of the New Jersey Second Amendment Society will be held Thursday March 28, 2013 at South Jersey Shooting Club, 840 Piney Hollow Road, Winslow, NJ 08043 (www.southjerseyshootingclub.com). Please register at www.nj2as.com We will be recapping the events of the NJ2AS rally, Assembly hearings on the 20+ proposed gun control measures, and counter protest events NJ2AS has participated in. Discussions on what NJ2AS has planned next, President Frank Fiamingo's meeting with Senator Sweeney, and NJ2AS organizational structure will take place. Most importantly, we will be taking suggestions from our members on how to continue to grow our numbers and what you would like to see NJ2AS doing to achieve this. SPECIAL GUEST SPEAKER NJ SENATE CANDIDATE, ATLANTIC COUNTY SHERIFF, AND PRESIDENT OF THE SHERIFF'S ASSOCIATION OF NJ FRANK BALLES Atlantic County Sheriff Frank Balles will be addressing the membership about the current gun control measures being discussed at both the federal and state levels. He is the president of the NJ Sheriff's Association, and a candidate for NJ State Senate this November on the Republican ticket running against Senator Jim Whelan in District 2 (Atlantic). Sheriff Balles is a supporter of second amendment rights. He has served as Atlantic County Sheriff since January 2009 and has accomplished much during his term. His complete bio can be viewed here http://www.acsheriff.org/main/aboutus/balles.asp . Information on the NJ Sheriff's association can be found at this link http://njsheriff.org . Please make every effort to attend this meeting and feel free to bring your friends. Not a member yet? You can sign up and join at the meeting. Due to scheduling conflicts we WILL NOT be offering concealed carry classes/processing (CCW) at this meeting.

BALLOT PETITION SIGNING EVENT To all liberty minded citizens in District 33: NJ2AS member, Anthony Mills, is running for State Assembly and needs your help to get on the ballot. Please join him at his petition signing event: Wednesday, 3/13/2013 7:00 PM Canco Lofts Common Room 50 Dey Street Jersey City, NJ 07306 In order to sign his petition, you must be a registered voter in District 33, which consists of Northern Jersey City, Weehawken, Hoboken and Union City. Anthony is running as a Democrat, so you must be a registered Democrat or be willing to declare yourself as a Democrat or change your party affiliation to Democrat prior to the Primary Election in June. Forms will be on hand at this event to allow you to do so. Don’t forget, the real battle in District 33 is the Democrat Primary as this district, like many others, have been gerrymandered to preclude the possibility of a Republican winning in the general election. Those of you who attended the public hearing of the Law and Public Safety Committee on February 13th will recognize the name of Assemblyman Sean Connors, a member of the committee, who participated in the unjust and unfair treatment of the more than 500 people who traveled to Trenton to testify that day. Assemblyman Connors is from district 33 and is running for reelection. Please join Anthony this Wednesday and help him get on the ballot and force Assemblyman Connors to fight for his job in the primary. RSVP to [email protected].

Please share this information with your local, county, and state level elected officials. We also encourage anyone running for office this year to attend. FAITH, FAMILY, FREEDOM, AND THE SECOND AMENDMENT March 19, 2013, Kenilworth, NJ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE The New Jersey Second Amendment Society (NJ2AS) in conjunction with the women of "The Last Civil Right" will be conducting a press conference and reception on the topic of the human rights protected by the constitution and their critical relationship to Faith, Family, and Freedom. All local officials, mayors, county officials, members of the NJ Senate and Assembly, and our New Jersey US Congressmen and Senators are encouraged to attend. This unique event is intended as a challenge to our elected officials to listen to their constituents about the true underlying causes of violence in our communities. You will hear a number of unique and independent perspectives including those of our Faith-Based Community Leaders, Pro-Family Activists and Second Amendment Rights Proponents. Potential solutions to reduce or eliminate the violence without infringing upon the fundamental rights of the people of our communities will be offered and considered. These problems will not resolve themselves. It is clear that civilian firearm ownership is not the cause of violence. The law abiding citizens of New Jersey are tired of proposed solutions that do not address the real problems. It is time that our elected officials listened to the people who hold Faith, Family, and Freedom paramount instead of pursuing restrictions that have no effect on criminals. The people have spoken, and are considering the positions of elected officials as we all look to the coming elections this year. This event will be held on Tuesday evening March 19, 2013 at the VFW Hall, 33 South 21st Street in Kenilworth, NJ 07033. The Press Conference will begin promptly at 6:00PM and the reception will follow. Light refreshments will be served. Admission is free and open to the public. We ask that you RSVP by registering for this special event at www.nj2as.com. Seating is limited and registration is necessary to avoid disappointment. The list of speakers include community leaders such as Pastor Shannon Wright of "The Last Civil Right" from Plainfield, NJ, Committeewoman for Milton Township, DuPage County of Chicago, IL Babetter Holder-Youngberg, Co-author of "The last Civil Right", "The White Folks Guide to Understanding the Black Community", and "Get Out The Vote" Kuuleme Stephens, Pro-family activist and leader Ms. Carolee Adams of Eagle Forum, Independent, Conservative Podcaster Reverend Kenn Blanchard (AKA "Black Man With A Gun"), and New Jersey Second Amendment Society President and co-founder Frank Jack Fiamingo. Biographies for the presenters can be found at www.nj2as.com. A list of public officials attending will be provided for the benefit of those in the community that will be pursuing these topics independently. We urge all citizens who wish to inform themselves and their elected representatives about practical solutions to the violence problems faced in the suburban and urban communities of NJ to attend. Register today, you will not be disappointed. For more information on this event, please contact NJ2AS President Frank Fiamingo at 609-848-0507

OPERATION ESTABLISH COMPLIANCE'S CONTINUED SUCCESS: 8 MORE TOWNS AGREE TO COMPLY WITH STATE LAW by Rich Petkevis, Director of Media Relations New Jersey Second Amendment Society MANAHAWKIN - The New Jersey Second Amendment Society (NJ2AS) is pleased to announce that 8 more towns have agreed to comply with NJ state law and remove their illegal additional forms when applying for a NJ Firearms ID card and/or NJ Permit to Purchase a Pistol. These towns are: Eatontown Branchburg Clinton Bridgewater Mansfield Hamilton Parsippany Franklin (Hunterdon) In most cases, the town and/or chief of police were cooperative and agreed with NJ2AS after reviewing our complaint. We thank them for their professionalism and support. Operation Establish Compliance (OEC) is an ongoing project of the New Jersey Second Amendment Society which seeks to notify municipal police departments who are in violation of NJ state law with regard to firearms permitting and help them correct their procedures. Since 2011, twenty towns have agreed to comply with NJ state law thanks to OEC. NJ State Law says: 2C:58-3f. ... There shall be no conditions or requirements added to the form of content of the application, or required by the licensing authority for the issuance of a permit or identification card, other than those that are specifically set forth in this chapter. There are municipal police departments that violate this statute as a matter of policy. NJ2AS has seen some of these additional forms, many of which have nothing to do with firearms. If you are a NJ resident who is applying for your firearms identification card or permit to purchase a hand gun, the only forms required by the NJ State law are the SP-66 "Consent For Mental Health Records Search", and S.T.S 033 "Application for Firearms Purchaser Identification Card and/or Handgun Purchase Permit". If your town requires extra paperwork, please visit the Operation Establish Compliance link on the NJ2AS web site (www.nj2as.com) for information regarding what you can do to help correct this problem. For more information on Operation Establish Compliance, the New Jersey Second Amendment Society, to sign up for membership or free email alerts, please visit our web site at www.nj2as.com . ###

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT NJ Senate President Steve Sweeney will be on IQ 106.9 FM news Philadelphia Friday morning February 22 weighing in on NJ's proposed gun control measures. The station announced he will be on the air approximately 7:35 AM. We urge everyone to listen in to hear what Senator Sweeny has to say about the proposed legislation. If you are not range of the Philadelphia radio market, you can listen online at www.iq1069.com The call in number for the morning news show is listed as 215-425-1069 on the web site. The station did not mention if they would allow the senator to take calls while on the air. A copy of the news story published by the radio station regarding the NJ gun control measures can be found here: www.iq1069.com/2013/02/21/garden-state-gun-laws-changing/

Michael Patrick Carrol is a true friend to us in the pro 2A community. On rally day when the power went out on the audio system, he was the one who made sure the building had no objections to our plugging into power indoors.

Thank you to everyone who attended today! You support is greatly appreciated.

Subject line: Maximum effectiveness visiting Trenton on Thursday Thank you to those of you planning to protest the proposed anti-2A legislation pending in Thursday’s vote. NJ2AS is asking you to arrive early and visit your Assemblyman’s office to HAND-DELIVER a letter with the text below which includes an analysis of the pending legislation. (In an ideal world you can/should personalize this letter to your representative with your signature and address.) Please hand-deliver the letter below to your representative early in Thursday morning. Dear (Representative), I am making a personal appeal to you to vote against the package of anti-Second Amendment legislation pending in today’s session. These bills are nothing more than political grandstanding that will not deter crime or keep guns out of the hands of criminals and gangs that wish to use them against society. On behalf of 1,000,000 New Jersey constitutional rights advocates and families I urge you to oppose and support the following: BILLS TO OPPOSE A588 (Spencer/Coutinho/Deignan) Prohibits possession of ammunition capable of penetrating body armor. Analysis: Effectively bans most rifle rounds. (Most body armor worn by police is only designed to stop handgun rounds; armor that stops rifle rounds is available, but not in common usage.) Gives Attorney General unilateral authority to ban specific rounds. Well intentioned or not, this would ban most rifle ammunition and render most rifles useless in the Garden State, including single shot rifles. Criminals will not follow this law. It will have no impact on school safety or mental health. A1329 (Greenwald/Quijano/Coutinho) Reduces maximum capacity of ammunition magazines to 10 rounds. Analysis: Reduces magazine capacity limit from 15 to 10 rounds. Interferes with self- defense, puts law-abiding citizens at a disadvantage in home invasions and other emergencies. Will not stop another tragedy, as magazines are capable of being changed quickly. Will be ignored by criminals, who will have advantage over the law-abiding. No impact on crime. No impact on school safety or mental health. Note: There is separate legislation to reduce magazine capacity to five rounds, but it is not presently scheduled to be considered on February 13. A1387 (Wilson/Johnson) Permits municipalities to establish weapons free zones around schools and public facilities. Analysis: Empowers cities and towns to create known areas around schools, parks and other public facilities where it is advertised to criminals and madmen that their victims are unarmed and defenseless. Creates large swaths of land where the exercise of Second Amendment rights is ostensibly outlawed. Attempts to create exemptions, but fails to adequately do so (examples: fails to exempt CCW permit holders and ranges, and attempted exemption of gun club members is flawed and exempts no one). Criminals will not follow gun free zones. Potential impact on crime: increased risk to law-abiding citizens within those zones. No impact on school safety or mental health. A3510 (Johnson/Vainieri Huttle) Requires proof of firearms safety training as a condition for issuance of firearms purchaser ID cards and permits to purchase handguns. Analysis: Requires firearms training in order to own firearms. Puts pre-conditions on the exercise of a Constitutional right (like requiring public speaking training before exercise of First Amendment rights). Presumes that firearms owners are not safe or knowledgeable. Affects only law-abiding citizens. No impact on criminals (who do not obtain firearms using permits and FID cards), school security or mental health. A3645 (Greenwald/Eustace/Mosquera) Requires ammunition sales and transfers be conducted as face-to-face transactions. Analysis: Bans Internet and catalog sales of ammunition and requires that ammunition be purchased in face-to-face transactions. Restricts sales of a lawful product. Gives a monopoly to NJ sellers. During supply shortages, interferes with self-defense and competitive shooting by precluding access to supplies available elsewhere. Apparently, legislators do not understand that online retailers require ID of purchasers, and that there is an electronic record of online sales. Only affects law-abiding citizens. Redundant/conflicts with other similar pending bills being considered. No impact on criminals (who will not follow it), school safety or mental health. A3646 (Greenwald) Establishes a regulatory system to govern the sale and transfer of ammunition. Analysis: Bans Internet and catalog sales of ammunition. Restricts sales of a lawful product. Gives a monopoly to NJ sellers. During supply shortages, interferes with self-defense and competitive shooting by precluding access to supplies available elsewhere. Apparently, legislators do not understand that online retailers require ID of purchasers, and that there is an electronic record of online sales. Only affects law-abiding citizens. Redundant/conflicts with other similar pending bills being considered. No impact on criminals (who will not follow it), school safety, or mental health. A3666 (Cryan/O’Donnell/Jasey) Prohibits mail order, Internet, telephone, and any other anonymous method of ammunition sale or transfer in New Jersey. Analysis: Bans internet and catalog sales of ammunition. Restricts sales of a lawful product. Gives a monopoly to NJ sellers. During supply shortages, interferes with self-defense and competitive shooting by precluding access to supplies available elsewhere. Apparently legislators do not understand that online retailers require ID of purchasers, and that there is an electronic record of online sales. Only affects law- abiding citizens. Redundant/conflicts with other similar pending bills being considered. No impact on criminals (who will not follow it), school safety, or mental health. A3754 (Cryan/O’Donnell/Quijano) Requires firearms seizure when mental health professional determines patient poses threat of harm to self or others. Analysis: Gives unprecedented power to suspend Constitutional rights and seize firearms to unaccountable health professionals, who are defined to include nurses, social workers and marriage counselors! Turns health professionals into spies and pressures them to err on the side of declaring someone a danger rather than face potential professional liability for failing to do so. Fails to provide due process to firearms owners, and creates potential for enormous abuse by anti-gun health professionals. The powers described in this bill properly belong in the courts, where due process must be provided, and not in the hands of unaccountable health professionals. This bill potentially impacts crime, mental health, and school safety, but is overkill in the extreme, is reminiscent of a police state, and fails to include important safeguards to protect Constitutional rights. A3772 (Eustace/Wagner/Vanieri Huttle) Requires that firearms purchaser identification cards display picture; mandates that firearms purchaser identification cards be renewed every five years. Analysis: Wipes out existing FID cards, which were supposed to be good for life, to require a new card with photo ID (apparently legislators do not understand that a photo ID is already required by Federal law at point of purchase from NJ dealers). Creates a massive new bureaucracy to implement and process card issuance and renewals. Makes firearms ownership more expensive and therefore less accessible to low-income citizens. Potential administrative nightmare and potential for extensive delays that interfere with exercise of Constitutional rights. Would eliminate the need for handgun purchase permits, but this legislation fails to address that and does not end the current permitting scheme which would still be retained. No impact on crime, school safety, or mental health. A3796 (Mainor) Provides 90-day window for persons to dispose of certain unlawfully possessed firearms. Analysis: Reopens for 90 days the window that closed in 1991, for owners of banned firearms to transfer or surrender those firearms. New Jersey’s assault firearms ban trapped owners of banned guns who did not surrender or sell them within the time period specified in that law. Since 1991, those owners have been left with no lawful avenue to comply. This legislation does not create a long enough window for notification of every gun owner in the State, and should create a meaningful opportunity for compliance (90 days is unnecessarily stingy). It also fails to reopen the window for unlawful magazines and ammunition. No impact on crime, school safety, or mental health. A3659 (Barnes, III/Johnson) Revises definition of destructive device to include certain weapons of .50 caliber or greater. Analysis: This bill is an attack on gun owners and sportsmen, banning many popular firearms and forcing their sale, destruction, or confiscation by the state. Pretends to ban only the .50 BMG rifle, but bans every rifle-barreled shotgun in the State (one of the most popular and widely used firearms), and many modern hunting rifles and handguns. Although the bill attempts to exempt shotguns, rifle-barreled shotguns are NOT covered by the exemption, because they do not have a smooth bore and therefore do not fit within New Jersey’s definition of “shotgun” under 2C:39-1(n). That definition specifies that a firearm must have a smooth bore (meaning no rifling) in order to be considered a shotgun. This legislation would also ban numerous rifles and handguns (see detailed list at the end of this document for particulars). This legislation contains no grandfathering; if it passes, gun owners will be under threat of criminal prosecution and incarceration if they do not sell, destroy, or turn these firearms in to the State in a forced buyback within one year. As for the .50 BMG rifle itself, it is not a threat to public safety because it is not used by criminals. With price tags as high as $10,000, they are exorbitantly expensive, large, heavy, difficult to conceal, and their military ammunition is already illegal in New Jersey. They are owned by professionals like doctors and lawyers who are able to afford them, who use them for matches, competition, and precision target shooting. Banning them will not impact crime or prevent another tragedy. This legislation has no impact on crime, school safety, or mental health. A1116 (Fuentes/Spencer) Establishes 180 day prohibition on purchase of handgun for certain individuals who fail to report loss or theft of firearm. Analysis: Suspends Second Amendment rights for six months for failure to report a lost or stolen firearm within 36 hours of discovery. Supposedly aimed at traffickers but naively presumes that traffickers buy their guns from dealers using permits. Has a punitive effect on law abiding gun owners who inadvertently miss the 36-hour reporting deadline. Has no impact on criminals. Has no impact on school safety or mental health. A3668 (Jasey/McKeon/Cryan) Prohibits investment by State of pension and annuity funds in companies manufacturing, importing, and selling assault firearms for civilian use. (pending referral). Analysis: Attempts to punish firearms manufacturers and coerce them into not selling semi- automatic firearms to civilians, by pulling state pension fund investments from those manufacturers who DO sell to civilians. Precludes the State from benefitting from high returns on investment in firearms manufacturing companies. No impact on crime, school safety or mental health. A3687 (Stender/Fuentes) Disqualifies person named on federal Terrorist Watchlist from obtaining firearms identification card or permit to purchase handgun. Analysis: Deprives Second Amendment rights without due process, based on a secret list compiled by government bureaucrats with no published standards, no way to correct errors (US Senators have been placed erroneously on the list), and potential for enormous abuse by anti-gun government bureaucrats. No one wants terrorists to have access to firearms, but gun owners, military veterans, conservatives and others could easily be mislabeled as terrorists (in order to deprive them of their rights), and there is evidence that officials in the current administration have said as much. Deprivation of Constitutional rights without due process is unconstitutional. No impact on school safety or mental health. Possible impacts on crime. A3717 (Lampitt/Singleton) Requires submission of certain mental health records to National Instant Criminal Background Check System. Analysis: Requires submission of certain mental health records to NICS. Potentially redundant with New Jersey’s existing mental health background checks required for issuance of handgun permits and FID cards. Legislation should specify that only records of persons who have had judicial due process (with an appeals process) should be submitted. Impacts mental health. A3748 (O’Donnell/Mainor/McKeon) Requires background check for private gun sales. Analysis: Eliminates all private sales. Apparently, legislators do not realize that private sales of handguns in NJ require a permit (which is only issued after a background check, and is still filed with the state and town), or that private sales of long guns require a firearms ID card (only issued after a background check) and mandated paperwork. Bill exempts police (private firearms collections of law enforcement should NOT be exempted), and attempts to exempt family members but fails to include transfers to siblings or parents. Also attempts to exempt curio & relic FFL holders, who are virtually nonexistent in NJ (since the failure of any FFL holder to also have a state license is a crime). Legislation also imposes potential delays on exercise of Second Amendment rights and self defense (since December, 2012, given the huge volume of people buying firearms, background checks have been anything but “instant” in New Jersey, often requiring 5 or more days for approvals). The bill would also have the effect of imposing additional fees that otherwise would not be charged. Bill also contains a serious drafting error on page 3. Will not be followed by criminals. No impact on crime, school safety, or mental health. A3750 (Cryan/O’Donnell/Quijano) Establishes regulatory and reporting program for all ammunition sales. Analysis: Requires dealers to document all ammunition sales and report them electronically to the State Police, including type and quantity of ammunition being purchased, and the identity of the purchaser. Creates a database of ammunition purchasers, and lays the groundwork for future restrictions and targeting of competitors, collectors, and target shooters who purchase ammunition in bulk. In combination with other ammunition bills being considered, restricts sales of a lawful product, gives a monopoly to NJ sellers, and during supply shortages, interferes with self-defense and competitive shooting by precluding access to supplies available elsewhere. Only affects law-abiding citizens. Redundant/conflicts with other similar pending bills being considered. No impact on criminals (who will not follow it), school safety, or mental health. AR143 (Quijano/Cryan/O’Donnell) Expresses support for Attorney General's gun buyback program. Analysis: Does not change state law. Potential impact on crime: gun buybacks allow criminals to dispose of (and profit from) crime guns with impunity, at taxpayer expense. Gun buybacks also allow for possible destruction of evidence that could help solve crimes, also at taxpayer expense. No impact on school safety, or mental health. AR144 (Oliver) Urges Governor Christie’s Administration not to apply for annual exemption from requirements of federal Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (pending referral). Analysis: Does not change state law. No impact on crime or school safety. Possible impacts on mental health. A1613 (Bramnick/Johnson) Establishes Educational Security Task Force. Analysis: Establishes a task force to help the State Board of Education develop statewide security guidelines and standards for school districts. Has potential to positively impact school safety, depending on task force results. Does not appear to directly threaten Second Amendment rights at this time. A3583 (Wilson) Creates task force to explore areas to improve school safety (pending intro and referral). Analysis: None (bill text unavailable at time of this posting) A3797 (Mainor) Requires law enforcement to report certain firearms information to inter-jurisdictional electronic databases including the national Integrated Ballistics Identification Network. Analysis: Would mandate statewide law enforcement reporting of information about firearms and spent casings recovered to national law enforcement databases. Fails to require that the information be made available only to law enforcement for investigative purposes, and fails to require that crime guns be distinguished from guns recovered from fires, floods, buybacks, and other non-crime sources. Potential impacts on crime. No impact on school safety or mental health. ACR180 (Greenwald) Urges President and Congress of United States to enact legislation enforcing stricter firearms control measures (pending intro and referral). Analysis: None (bill text unavailable at the time of this alert). BILLS TO SUPPORT A3788 (Rible/Dancer) Codifies regulation exempting firearms records from State's open public records law; abolishes common law right of access to these records. Analysis: Strengthens state law mandating the confidentiality of gun owner information. Helps prevent a New York-type situation where media publishes personal information of firearms owners. Possible impacts on crime (prevents theft from gun owners resulting from publishing of their information). No impacts on school safety or mental health. Note: ANJRPC supports this legislation. Sincerely, Your signature Address