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NJ ruling touching upon right to arms
Ev Nappan has a posting regarding a NJ Superior Court ruling (I think the Superior Ct. is, in NJ, the appellate court). Gist appears to be that NJ passed a law providing that no one who had had guns seized and not returned, for any reason, loses his firearm purchase permit. The plaintiff had had guns seized and had voluntarily given them up, and was denied a permit. The court holds that plaintiff had a second amenment right, and it could not be unknowingly waived by voluntarily giving up firearms.
[hat tip to a Buckeye Firearms Assn volunteer]
Comments
Interesting in that legislation enacted bars domestic abusers from obtaining arms even though the aledged abuse happened long before the law went into effect.
Note the horror stories of spouses who for expediencey failed to litigate bogus abuse charges not knowing they might and then did lose their rights to arms at some later date.
Tom Gunn
Posted by: Tom Gunn at March 20, 2007 01:15 PM
Kudos to Evan on that! If you ever have gun trouble in New Jersey, Evan is certainly your guy.
Posted by: Bitter at March 20, 2007 01:29 PM
hmm. isn't this situation fairly closely parallel to the federal Lautenberg amendment?
Posted by: Nomen Nescio at March 21, 2007 06:50 AM
I did a little research. The New Jersey Superior Courts are the top trial courts in each county. This decision was by a single judge. Then there's an Apellate Court above that, but it's still termed "Superior Court," with a three-judge panel. That's the type of court that decided New Jersey v Pelleteri.
This case has been appealed. I don't expect a good outcome, but I've been surprised before.
Posted by: Kevin Baker at March 21, 2007 08:00 AM
Omigod I'm gonna faint.
A NEW JERSEY court ruled that the Second Amendment actually applies to individuals? In The People's Republic of NEW JERSEY???
I say this as a NJ-born native who lived there for 35 years before exercising my constitutionally protected right to travel and fleeing to the Free World of the United States (i.e., Virginia).
Posted by: Bill at March 22, 2007 03:51 PM