SAF, ANJRPC Will Appeal New Jersey Right-to-carry Ruling

The Second Amendment Foundation and Association of New Jersey Rifle & Pistol Clubs will appeal a federal judge's ruling Friday that "the Second Amendment does not include a general right to carry handguns outside the home."

Federal Judge William H. Walls, a Clinton appointee, dismissed a case filed by both organizations challenging New Jersey's handgun carry laws, which have all but eliminated the right to self-defense with a firearm outside the home.

"The Second Amendment Foundation and ANJRPC are prepared to take this case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, where SAF has already won a landmark case defending the rights of gun owners," said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb.

In upholding the New Jersey law, which effectively denies the right to carry a firearm for self-defense outside the home, Judge Walls wrote "the protection of citizens from potentially lethal force is compelling."

"The judge has it backwards," said ANJRPC President Scott Bach. "If he really cared about protecting citizens from lethal force, he wouldn't be interfering with their constitutional right to defend themselves against violent criminals. Ironically, the U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly held that the police owe no duty to protect individual citizens, so you're on your own when you step outside your home. This decision wrongly demonizes those who want to take responsibility for their own safety and turns all but a privileged few into helpless victims."

Particularly disturbing to Gottlieb was Judge Walls' comment, "The Supreme Court has found limitations on the scope of a constitutional right outside the home in the First Amendment context, recognizing a right to privately possess obscene materials in the home but allowing the states broad power to regulate obscenity outside the home."

"He appears to suggest the right to keep and bear arms is an obscenity," Gottlieb said. "I wonder how that view might square with Thomas Jefferson or James Madison."

Judge Walls' decision sets the stage for appeals which could bring this case to the U.S. Supreme Court as early as next year. The case was filed in late 2010 by ANJRPC, SAF and six individual plaintiffs, challenging New Jersey's "justifiable need" standard for issuance of handgun carry permits, which is nearly an impossible standard to meet. Plaintiffs believe that requiring a showing of "need" to exercise a fundamental right is unconstitutional.

The Second Amendment Foundation (www.saf.org) is the nation's oldest and largest tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group focusing on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess firearms. Founded in 1974, The Foundation has grown to more than 650,000 members and supporters and conducts many programs designed to better inform the public about the consequences of gun control.

"the protection of citizens perps from potentially lethal force is compelling."

Exactly! By insuring the survival and health of the criminal element, the police unions are insured that their ranks will grow, their militarization will continue and the oppression of NJ citizens is guaranteed.

The ability of the police to run rough-shod over any constitutional right of the citizens is coming to NJ. It's already happening with increasing regularity and will continue until we are all just serfs. You get the government you ask for and this is what NJ has become.

I commend Gotleib, Bach, the SAF and ANJRPC (both of which I contribute to) but I think this is an insurmountable challenge in NJ and 40 years of liberal pollution will not turn on one supreme court ruling. I sincerely hope I'm proven wrong.

My ancestors put their unloaded guns in a locked strong-box every time they they left home and you can bet the founding fathers did also.

Amazing! Just think of the safety and fast response to an armed emergency when your ancestors put their BLACK POWDERED, UNLOADED guns in a locked strong-box every time they left home!

I call you out on this one for it is pure BS. No one was stupid enough to:

Travel without some type of gun.

Carry an unloaded black powdered gun for safety.

Keep an unloaded black powdered gun in their “locked safety” box.

In general, kept the dangerous weapon away from the children in the name of safety.

So much for that.

I will tell you what your ancestors did about their guns; they taught their children and wives about gun safety and gave stern warnings to them if they even touched the guns.....and they meant it. Furthermore, very young boys were expected to be trained in the firing of guns.

Your ancestors were not the sniveling little sheep we have today. Don’t demean their contribution to the protection of the family.

With that in mind, buy (or borrow) a black powdered gun that is an actual flintlock, make sure it is unloaded, place in a locked case or box, go outside and shoot at least 5 of the neighbor’s dogs with a standard pistol, run back into the house (let them see you go in) and wait for them to come to kill you. When that happens, run to the locked box, get the gun, prime and load it, pack it in real good with the ramrod, and see if you can do it before you leave this earth.

There are a myriad of factors that people need to understand about the insane gun laws in NJ. First of which, is that there is no provision for a 2nd Amendment in the State’s constitution. Secondly, are firearms are technically illegal, unless one fits and passes certain exemptions: A firearms purchaser identification card ( in order to purchase and possess long guns), obtaining a permit to purchase a pistol( not for carrying purposes.) Said pistol purchase permits are valid for 90 days, and can be renewed if the issuing department chooses to do so, and one can only purchase (1) handgun every 30 days. These laws are routinely violated by municipal police departments that do not follow the letter of the law when it comes to issuance. There are people that have waited months, even though the law states that 30 days is the time frame to issue purchase permits. On top of that, you have departments that allow only one permit per issuance, even though the law states that you may apply for as many permits as you wish. Certain municipalities also impose additional requirements ( set by the municipalities, not by state law.) Some towns demand a credit check, disclosure to one’s employer, permission from one’s landlord, an affidavit from occupants of the same dwelling stating that it is permissible for one to keep firearms in their dwelling. All of these are illegal, contrary to state law, and certainly do not pass constitutional muster. Furthermore, the former attorney general has made statements to the effect that if NJ did go right to carry, more police would need to be hired to protect the public from such persons who routinely carry firearms. Folks, I’m not making this up. It really is this bad, and it’s going to take a case to the Supreme Court to drag the state kicking and screaming back into compliance. The “justifiable need” clause to qualify for a carry permit is arbitrary, capricious, and unconstitutional to say the least. I highly recommend all residents of New Jersey make it a priority to donate to the Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs, the Second Amendment Society, and the NRA. As I’ve stated in the past, the culture toward firearms in the State of New Jersey is one of fear and ignorance, and only through education, and legal action against the state can we ever hope to bring New Jersey back into mainstream America as it pertains to our God given right to keep and bear arms.

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