New Jersey Gun Rights Group Sues Government, Attacks Carry Law

Just because you leave your home doesn’t mean that your Constitutional rights go out the door, too. That’s what New Jersey’s oldest gun rights advocacy group argued on Monday as its members announced a new federal lawsuit to overturn New Jersey’s firearm carry law on the ground that it violates the Second Amendment.

The Association of New Jersey Rifle & Pistol Clubs – which filed the lawsuit in cooperation with the National Rifle Association – is attacking New Jersey's “draconian restrictions” on carrying a handgun outside the home... specifically the “justifiable need” requirement that has frustrated Garden State gun rights advocates for years.

According to the ANJRPC:

“Under New Jersey law, a permit to carry a handgun may be issued only to those citizens who show that they face a unique need for self-defense – such as specific, documented death threats or actual attacks. Ordinary citizens are barred from carrying a handgun outside the home for self-defense, under threat of up to 10 years in prison.”

Although federal courts in New Jersey have previously upheld New Jersey’s restrictions, the new lawsuit asks the courts to take another look at the issue based on a recent federal decision striking down the District of Columbia’s similar law as unconstitutional.

Read the full complaint here.

The lawsuit offers the case of plaintiff Thomas Rogers, a New Jersey resident who was allegedly robbed at gunpoint while working as the manager of a restaurant.

According to the ANJRPC, Rogers runs a large ATM business that causes him to frequently service ATM machines in high-crime areas, and wants to carry a gun for self-defense. His application for a permit to carry a handgun was denied in Wall Township in 2017.

'STRONGEST GUN LAWS IN THE NATION'

According to the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, New Jersey "has some of the strongest gun laws in the nation, and... one of the lowest gun death rates.”

• See related article: N.J.'s Strict Gun-Control Laws May Soon Be Lifted By The Federal Government

In January, Governor Phil Murphy rescinded a rule adopted by the Christie administration that attempted to weaken New Jersey's stringent standards of what was considered a "justifiable need" to carry a handgun.

New Jersey law previously required individuals seeking to obtain a handgun-carry permit to demonstrate that they had been the recipient of specific threats or attacks. However, the Christie administration policy, adopted in March 2017, attempted to reduce the threshold by allowing applicants to include “serious threats” to support the justifiable need requirement.

As such, Murphy said, someone who lives or works in an area where certain crimes are common could arguably apply for a handgun-carry permit by citing a concern for their safety, even if they had not been personally subjected to a threat or incident.

• See related article: Gov. Phil Murphy Just Did 3 Things That Could Impact Your Life

But if the ANJRPC lawsuit is successful, gun rights advocates in the Garden State will gain an important foothold in their fight against justifiable need.

“The core Second Amendment right of armed self-defense is just as important to an ordinary New Jersey citizen when she is traveling through a dangerous neighborhood as it is when she is safe in her home,” ANJRPC Executive Director Scott Bach said. “The Supreme Court has said that the states cannot ban people from keeping firearms for self-defense in their homes, and New Jersey’s restrictions on carrying firearms outside the home will meet the same end.”

• See related article: Should New Jersey Let Out-Of-State Gun Owners Conceal-Carry?
• See related article: Which New Jersey Reps. Voted For Conceal-Carry Gun Bill?

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