Law & Public Safety Hearing

[Pizza Bob 1,488]

While I didn't stay to the bitter end, I was there, in the main hearing room (there were so many of us there that they had an overflow room, which we also filled, and the remainder were outside - at least it wasn't raining) until about 3:30 - about half an hour after the buses left.

 

I won't say that it was a farce, but it was clear from the outset that, to the committee, this was just a formality - their minds were already made-up. Two bright spots were our sheer numbers - hopefully that gave them pause - and the presence of Asm Allison McHose. I'm not sure what she was doing there, as she isn't listed as being a member of that committee, but I'm glad she was. She was the one beacon of light in what was the darkness of that committee.

 

There was a lot of good testimony. The mix in the room, excluding the committee, was probably 95% pro-gun and 5% anti. Two standouts from the board were mcbethr and irishpeteswife. Mcbethr for his own unique perspective, that while it had people laughing, it also got them thinking. And IPW for bringing Maggie, her daughter and having her come up to the speaker's table with her, and then talking about wanting to be able to protect her. Brilliant strategy, whether by design or necessity it really worked well - don't get me wrong, it wasn't just the fact nthat she had Maggie with her, her speech had real substance to it.

 

I would have liked to have seen vlad testify - his posts here are always erudite and well thought out, so I'm sure his testimony was likewise - but my ride (Sgt Toadette) had to get to work, so we missed the tale end.

 

There were two humorous moments of the hearing, at least for me. The first was during testimony on the mag limit bill and I think it was someone from the anti side said she didn't know how long it took to change a mag. The chairman, first qualifies himself by puffing up and saying that he's a LEO and has to qualify twice a year, and that it takes about twenty seconds to change a mag. The room just erupted in laughter. I wish that I was close enough to have seen his face in reaction to that. Apparently it made an impression on others there also. Later there was a tactical EMT (whatever that is, but God bless him) testifying and he commented that upon leaving the hearing he had to go and qualify - and then added, almost as an aside, "If it takes me 20 seconds to change a mag, I'm bounced."

 

The second incident was like watching the scene in the movie "A Few Good Men" where Jack Nicholson screams at the judge, "The truth? You can't handle the truth." It was a woman testifying and while she was testifying the chairman was having a side conversation. She took considerable umbrage at that and really took him to task. Stopped in the middle of her testimony, waited until he stopped, and then told him that if he wanted us to respect him he had better accord us the same respect. It was getting quite heated when the chairman used a technique he had used all day - telling her that her time was up. He had to repeat it several times, louder each time, and she finally retorted, in her best Jack Nicholson manner, "No. Your time is up in November." Which just brought the house down.

 

OK, those were the high points. I have a feeling that all these bills will just get pushed out to the full Assembly, and we'll have to go from there.

 

Adios,

 

PIzza Bob

[alec.mc 180]

Vlad's testimony was awesome, great great speech.

[anactivegrenade 25]

I'd like to say we had an incredible presence there today, on such short notice.

 

However, I'm completely disgusted by the Committee. Chairman Pervert Charles Mainor is a disgrace to this nation. He deserves to be the right-hand man of some Communist dictator. Without a doubt, he is a sack of horse manure.

 

With a 95% pro-gun audience, he simply scoffed at all of us, and licked the feet of the few nonsensical anti-gunners who came.

[SgtToadette 59]

I'm a bit bummed that I had to go to work as I would have wanted to stay the entire duration and have the opportunity to testify. I'm curious to see what moments make it to the news outlets.

 

There was a much greater news presence at the beginning of the hearing and it died out after several hours, which is probably fortunate for us since that's when the testimonies became preachy and lost sight of why the hearing was being had.

 

I was glad to hear that the AG aspect of the armor-piercing bill was removed, but aside from that, the meeting was what I anticipated it to be.

[gunforhire 826]

Great showing by all 2A supporters today!

[Jim Hartman 31]

So now it goes to the assembly ,It has to pass there and then to the Senate, same has to pass , and then to Christie? Is this correct?

[millsan1 3]

Here is my testimony, which the Chair cut off and I had to speak over him until the Sargeant at Arms came over and turned off my mic. All over 2 sentences.

 

Hello. My name is Anthony Mills. I am a lifelong resident of this state and proud of it. I currently live in Jersey City, NJ. Jersey City is a study in dichotomy. On one hand, you have affluent communities with million dollar plus condos. Conversely, there are many sections of the city that are true inner city. Poverty, crime, drugs and urban blight. In many locations, these areas are separated by a few blocks.

 

Crime is a problem in Jersey City.

 

Gun crime is a problem in Jersey City.

 

Jersey City Police Department maintains statistics for violent crimes and makes those statistics available online. Violent crimes are as follows, Homicide, Rape, Robbery, Aggravated Assault, Burglary, Theft, Motor Theft and Arson.

 

I took some time to examine the data from 2012. Here is what I found:

 

On average, there were 611 violent crimes per month, with a high in August of 2012 with 731 and a low in February with 502.

 

On Average, there were 35 firearm crimes with a high in January of 2012 with 48 and a low in November with 25.

 

Clearly, something needs to be done to fix the crime and firearm crimes in Jersey City.

 

I spoke to Jersey City PD detectives. They told me that in Jersey City, there are ~45,000 FID card holders. I was shocked. I thought I was the only one.

 

Another statistic they shared with me did not shock me. Of those ~45,000 FID card holders in Jersey City, exactly ZERO have committed a crime with a gun in 20+ years. That is a verifiable fact. ~45,000 Legal, Law Abiding gun owners and not ONE has committed a crime with their firearms in 20+ years.

 

This examination of crime in a high crime city, with a large number of legal gun owners, none of which has committed a crime with their guns shows that regulation only impacts the law abiding.

 

35 Firearms crimes a month. Every month. Over 20 years, that is 8,400 firearms crimes. And exactly ZERO of those committed by lawful owners.

Please do not vote for any more laws that only impact law abiding citizens.

 

Thank you

[Forddsl96 0]

Thanks Bob !

 

Made me smile...............

 

You and me Both Nick... Wish I could have been there to feel the energry in the room.. Glad to hear there were some good people there ...

[The_Bishop 0]

Work and a sick child prevented me being there today, but I've been burning up the keyboard writing everyone relevant in opposition of *any* of this trash.

 

Listening to the votes at the end just re-affirmed what I suspected at the onset: Their minds were made up before the 'panel' even started.

[Forddsl96 0]

You and me Both Nick... Wish I could have been there to feel the energry in the room.. Glad to hear there were some good people there ...

 

Im sorry you got cut off Millsan1... Probally because you were stating facts.. And they didn't want to hear it.. Glad you were there and got a chance to speak.

[rlsbee 1]

First, thank you to all who attended and testified. Second, it makes me very proud to be associated with this group. I listened to most of the testimony on the internet and I was able to associate a few people by name or reference.

In regards to Pizza Bob's post where he said " It was a woman testifying and while she was testifying the chairman was having a side conversation. She took considerable umbrage at that and really took him to task. Stopped in the middle of her testimony, waited until he stopped, and then told him that if he wanted us to respect him he had better accord us the same respect. It was getting quite heated when the chairman used a technique he had used all day - telling her that her time was up. He had to repeat it several times, louder each time, and she finally retorted, in her best Jack Nicholson manner, "No. Your time is up in November." Which just brought the house down." I also liked when the chairman told her that it was 'HIS' meeting she quickly corrected him that it was 'OUR' meeting and it's in 'OUR' building. She really set him straight.

Millsan1... that was a great statistic that you added.

Thanks again to all.

'

[Sigman 41]

Work and a sick child prevented me being there today, but I've been burning up the keyboard writing everyone relevant in opposition of *any* of this trash.

 

Listening to the votes at the end just re-affirmed what I suspected at the onset: Their minds were made up before the 'panel' even started.

 

That's OK - if you're good with keyboard assault, then do it full bore. We need to attack from all sides.

[djg0770 481]

"No. Your time is up in November."

 

EPIC! Anyone want to participate in a fire mission on Ass Mainor's facebook page?? I think we should post that quote on his facebook page, every day...

 

Damn, I'd have to friend him first and THAT'S not going to happen.

[gwunj 0]

Hi all

 

I'm new to the forum but wanted to provide some info. After I spoke at 4:45pm and mentioned the disenfranchisement of the folks who had to leave on the busses, the executive director for the majority office spoke to me. I gave him my email so he could send me the contact information for those who were unable to speak. Feel free to pass it along to those who need a mechanism to be heard. Not that it will stop them, but at least it's a chance to vent. Here's what he said:

 

From: Caruso, William [mailto:[email protected]]

Sent: Wednesday, February 13, 2013 4:43 PM

Subject: Nice meeting you

 

Thank you for attending today's hearing in Trenton. Please feel free to correspond with us on any issue. Also, if you are aware of anyone who was unable to testify today, please feel free to forward them this info.

 

Thanks,

 

Bill Caruso

Executive Director

Assembly Majority Office

[Ray Ray 3,566]

Vlad's testimony was awesome, great great speech.

 

PM me the link for the video!

 

Thanks Bob, good response.

[hd2000fxdl 422]

 

PM me the link for the video!

 

Thanks Bob, good response.

 

No please post it here, I think we all want to see it.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[H.M. Murdock 0]

And IPW for bringing Maggie, her daughter and having her come up to the speaker's table with her, and then talking about wanting to be able to protect her. Brilliant strategy, whether by design or necessity it really worked well - don't get me wrong, it wasn't just the fact nthat she had Maggie with her, her speech had real substance to it.

 

Loved it. But frustrated that the caption of their photo on the NJ.com article doesn't state that she was against the proposed bills.

 

The second incident was like watching the scene in the movie "A Few Good Men" where Jack Nicholson screams at the judge, "The truth? You can't handle the truth." It was a woman testifying and while she was testifying the chairman was having a side conversation. She took considerable umbrage at that and really took him to task. Stopped in the middle of her testimony, waited until he stopped, and then told him that if he wanted us to respect him he had better accord us the same respect. It was getting quite heated when the chairman used a technique he had used all day - telling her that her time was up. He had to repeat it several times, louder each time, and she finally retorted, in her best Jack Nicholson manner, "No. Your time is up in November." Which just brought the house down.

 

Nora Craig. The Lady. The Legend.

[Caine 147]

Another statistic they shared with me did not shock me. Of those ~45,000 FID card holders in Jersey City, exactly ZERO have committed a crime with a gun in 20+ years. That is a verifiable fact. ~45,000 Legal, Law Abiding gun owners and not ONE has committed a crime with their firearms in 20+ years.

This was one of the stand out moments of the hearing. BIG +1 for you, sir!

[ryan_j 0]

I enjoyed listening to all of you guys. I really wish I could have been there.

 

Not to sound defeatist but I think that Christie is our only firewall against this. We have to concentrate on him and make sure he knows that he will lose if he lets any of this pass.

[Stonecoldchavez 92]

I really wish I could have made it inside to see all of this. Unfortunately, as mentioned above, at this committee meeting their minds are already made up. The politicians simple do not care. They think there is not enough of us to make them lose their jobs and they are probably right. They never lose their political bases. I have written over ten politicians and have only received only four responses and basically they told me to F.U. that they are voting for the AWB regardless of my letter.

[hcasillasjr 1]

Well, looks like they ok'd all of the bills presented. It will have to go to the assembly floor for vote and then to the senate floor for vote before it is presented to the Governor. I guess we'll just have to start flooding his emails, faxes and phones with oposition.

[Mike48 0]

Cryan's 20 second mag change must be spreading like wildfire among the State Police....then eventually to the Sheriffs....then to the Town Chiefs....the only thing he will be able to say is "I never had sex with that woman"....

 

 

...addendum....guess his Mafia buddies should be yukking it up too

 

http://www.fivefamiliesnyc.com/2011/02/mafia-supports-assemblyman-joe-cryan.html

 

 

..I am now beginning to understand why he wants to disarm us

[Vlad G 345]

No please post it here, I think we all want to see it.

 

 

Audio of myself around 6:36:05 http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/media/archive_audio2.asp?KEY=ALP&SESSION=2012

[PDM 91]

Kudos to NJ2AS and all who attended. I badly wanted to go but had work commitments I couldn't get out of, but I just made a $100 contribution to NJ2AS.

 

It is heartening to see the grass roots activism spreading. I really loved how nervous Senator Weinberg sounded, and how she and others kept pointing out that the hundreds of people who showed up to oppose these bills are just some sort of "fringe." I think they were quite surprised b/c as far as I know nothing like this has happened before in this state on the gun issue.

 

As has been mentioned by others, the one point that I was hoping someone would make is the fundamental unfairness of the double standard when it comes to the mag capacity limitation and other gun laws. I would have started by saying to Brian Miller and the other "antis" -- "You are not the enemy. We disagree completely on critical issues such as fundamental rights and how people can keep themselves safe, but I believe that although you are misguided you are sincere in your desire to make society safer. The real problem is the people sitting in front of us..." I would have then gone on to ask Miller and the others why, exactly, they think it is ok for Mainor and Cryan and other retired LEOs to keep their 15 round magazines? Training? Well the 20 second mag change belies that; many people in the audience were obviously much more highly trained than Mainor, etc., etc.

 

We need to make the 2A/rights arguments and the "criminals don't obey the law" argument -- once or twice. But we really need to focus on ideas that everyone can relate to. Fundamental fairness, good governance, abuse of power, etc. I wish someone had called Cryan and Mainor out on that.

[raz-0 1,259]

 

It is heartening to see the grass roots activism spreading. I really loved how nervous Senator Weinberg sounded, and how she and others kept pointing out that the hundreds of people who showed up to oppose these bills are just some sort of "fringe." I think they were quite surprised b/c as far as I know nothing like this has happened before in this state on the gun issue.

 

 

According to the usher or whatever they are who we were chatting with this hasn't happened for any bill that she can remember. She was referring to the crowd and trying to hear this many bills in one day. Part of the late start was that they had to move the room multiple times.

[Sandy 44]

Loved it. But frustrated that the caption of their photo on the NJ.com article doesn't state that she was against the proposed bills.

 

 

 

Nora Craig. The Lady. The Legend.

 

Indeed. I'm sure that was intentional.

 

Thanks for the words of approval Bob and others Truth is I choked in the middle , I had a few other things I wanted to say. First time public speaking Next time , not so nervous.

[pjd832 146]

vladg.....i liked your speech most of all those i heard...especially based on your perspective!......would like to choke the woman giggling and reading the bill numbers and asking for release or decline at the end of the audio

[Chvl67 0]

Nora was simply awesome. Someone must find this woman. She didn't back down and came right back every time.

 

I want to know who the "Jew from Cherry Hill" was too. The economic impact to this state will be absolutely devastating.

 

As usual, guys like Fiamingo and Biden continued to impress.

[H.M. Murdock 0]

I want to know who the "Jew from Cherry Hill" was too.

 

Code name: Beretta

[gwunj 0]

I'm dropping a note of thanks to Peterson, Kean and Albano along with an appeal for their continued support through their colleagues. Each of them did vote against forwarding most if not all of the key bills. Also a separate thanks to McHose, who isn't listed on the committee. You can find how they voted at http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/committees/ShowCommittee.asp.

 

On to contacting my district assembly reps and senator.