By Dan Roberts
Manasquan, NJ –-(Ammoland.com)- Word came late this afternoon that a backroom deal has been arranged between both houses of the NJ Legislature to reduce by a completely arbitrary amount the maximum capacity of ammunition magazines from the current 15 rounds, to no more then 10.
This is a goal that has been pursued by various NJ Legislatures such as Lou Greenwald (D-6) for the last three Legislative Sessions but got little traction until 2013 after the horrific shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
It was held back from being voted on last June by Senate President Steve Sweeney, who publicly stated that the existing limit of 15 was sufficient.
That’s all changed in the blink of an eye. With his eye’s firmly set on taking over Chris Christie’s job as Governor in a few years, the formerly long time NRA A Rated Sweeney has shown his true colors in recent weeks. Lashing out at constituents for persisting in questioning him regarding his position on NJ Gun laws during regular Twitter Thursday Events.
After last Summer proposing some of the most onerous Anti Gun Legislation in recent memory, dropping his NRA A rating to a C and costing him the support of many blue collar gun enthusiasts in his home district.
Details are scarce thus far. But what we do know is that the terms of the deal, as reported by two sources close to the negotiations have stated, seem to center on accepting the ten round magazine capacity limit in exchange for tweaks to the wording of the current firearms transportation laws.
Its true that NJ’s restrictions on transporting firearms legally are notoriously draconian and have been used in the past as threat to intimidate gun owners and prospective gun owners, as well as a weapon of vicious punishment for even honest, technical mistakes, as was seen in the Aitkens and Revell cases. There is no logical reason for gun owners to agree with gaining back a few more exceptions to an already overly narrow law governing something that has been stolen from them, in exchange for agreeing to go along quietly with a new, even lower magazine capacity restriction that is already in place and that will have absolutely no effect on violent crime or shootings.
Greg Ridgeway the Deputy Director of the National Institute of Justice ( The research and academic arm of the Dept of Justice) reported in a secret “white paper“ study to the Obama Administration in January 2013 stated.
” The 1994 ban on large capacity magazines had limited effectiveness because ” Large Capacity Magazines” are a durable good ”
Dr Ridgeway went on to state ” In order to have an impact, large capacity magazine regulation needs to sharply curtail their availability to include restrictions on importation, manufacture, sale, and possession. An exemption for previously owned magazines ( Grandfathering), would nearly eliminate any impact. The program would need to be coupled with an extensive buyback of existing large capacity magazines. With any exemptions, the impact of restrictions would only be felt when the magazines degraded or when they were no longer compatible with guns in circulation. This would take decades to realize”.
A separate, more exhaustive study undertaken by the Non Partisan National Academy of Sciences in 2004 titled ” Firearms and Violence, A Critical Review” examined twenty of the most Popular Gun Control laws or proposals and found not one, including those pertaining to limiting magazine capacity had “any statistically significant impact on crime or violent crime rates”.
Of course, all this will be ignored by the likes of Loretta Weinberg (D Essex) who was instrumental in co-coordinating bringing several out of state Sandy Hook Families to Trenton last year to push for such restrictions in New Jersey. Something main stream media, like Editor in Chief Tom Moran at The Star Ledger, had nothing but praise for. Apparently as reported in today’s late breaking news, arrangements are already in the works to bring Sandy Hook Families back next week as part of the public spectacle and “fanfare” surround this deal.
“As part of the fanfare surrounding the announcement of the ammunition magazine limit, families of the young victims of the 2012 Newtown, Ct. school shootings will be on hand to attend a press conference with legislative leaders. “
It remains to be seen if Mr Moran and Co will express the same indignant outrage with regard to bringing in families from out of State as props for this assault on legal gun owners as he was just days ago when telling Wyoming and numerous other States to “butt out” of NJ Gun laws.
The same Loretta Weinberg who, after coming under withering questioning regarding an earlier attempt at banning .50 rifles, stormed out of a Committee Hearing on the matter and was heard by several witnesses saying “What do you expect me to know about all this ? We pass laws all the time we know nothing about “
The same Loretta Weinberg, who was among a clutch of female Legislators last Spring and was caught during a “hot mic” moment when the words “Confiscate, Confiscate, Confiscate” were uttered. Several people familiar with Weinberg’s voice, after listening to the audio tape insisted it was her, but independent verification never came to light.
The fact is, this issue is not now, and never was about having any meaningful impact on actual crime or criminals. It is about power, control, arrogance and a deep seated, vicious and bigoted hatred of firearms and their owners.
If it was about crime, the Legislature could simply pass a law that made the possession or use of a so called “high capacity magazine” during the commission of crime a sentence enhancer, just like they have done in the past with the Grave’s Act and with Hollow Point Bullets. The fact that there isn’t even a mention of such language in this deal, and that is it focused exclusively on the hollow act of giving back to law abiding gun owners rights and privileges that were illegally and unethically stolen from them in exchange for the arbitrary mag capacity limit is proof that this was never about criminals.
It was about Democrat’s Extreme Anti Gun Ideology plain and simple.
About Dan RobertsDan Roberts is a grassroots supporter of gun rights that has chosen AmmoLand Shooting Sports News as the perfect outlet for his frank, ‘Jersey Attitude’ filled articles on Guns and Gun Owner Rights.As a resident of the oppressive state of New Jersey he is well placed to be able to discuss the abuses of government against our inalienable rights to keep and bear arms as he writes from deep behind NJ’s Anti-Gun iron curtain. Read more from Dan Roberts or email him at DRoberts@ammoland.com You can also find him on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dan.roberts.18