The Gun Blogs

Re: Weapons cache seized at home in Greenville

I'm a little confused.

According to the last sentence of your report: "The man had been licensed to own the guns, but he isn't allowed to keep them under the court order, reports said."

So. In New Jersey, legally owned firearms can be seized from someone's legal residence because someone else in the residence feels threatened?

Is there more to this story? Was the 23 year old communicating threats? Was he acting out violently? Was he using the firearms illegally? By reading your report, the impression is that the father didn't even know the Son HAD the weapons until he "discovered" them. How could he have felt threatened by that and what grounds are there for confiscating someone's personal (and expensive) property from their legal residence after having jumped through the hoops required to lawfully possess them in New Jersey?

According to your article, the only law that was broken was his possession of "illegal 'hollow-point' rounds".

I'm no lawyer, but my understanding of the law is that it is not illegal to possess hollowpoint ammunition in one's residence:

Title 2c:39-3 Prohibited Weapons and Devices

f. (1) "Any person, other than a law enforcement officer or persons engaged in activities pursuant to subsection f. of N.J.S.2C:39-6, who knowingly has in his possession any hollow nose or dum-dum bullet,"

g. (2) a. "Nothing in subsection f. (1) shall be construed to prevent a person from keeping such ammunition at his dwelling, premises or other land owned or possessed by him, or from carrying such ammunition from the place of purchase to said dwelling or land..."

That seems pretty clear cut to me. But I'm sure a responsible journalist would have looked up the law and made sure it was illegal to own such ammunition before arbitrarily asserting its illegality. Perhaps you would be so kind as to explain to me how I am misinterpreting the code in question.

By the way, what genius decided that "hollow nose bullet[s]" are bad? Hollowpoints generally don't penetrate as well as jacketed rounds and, therefore, are less likely to defeat bullet resistant vests worn by the Police. Does New Jersey have something against Police? New Jersey would rather people carry jacketed rounds that are more likely to penetrate Police's protective clothing than hollow points that are less likely to do so? You people are some strange ducks. But I digress.

In summary, agents of the State of New Jersey relieved a person of their legally owned and properly licensed property because that property made someone else "worried".

What kind of Jack-booted police state are you people running up there?

Cross posted on Captain of a Crew of One