By Dave Workman
Editor-in-Chief
Things are happening in New Jersey, and for gun rights activists, the situation is beginning to look a little brighter, despite the state legislature being two votes away from achieving a Democrat super majority.
According to Joe LaPorto, director of legal operations for the New Jersey Firearm Owners Syndicate, “We’ve had a busy couple of months here. Since June we’ve sued the state of New Jersey twice, we sued on the 18-20-year old ban with SAF, and then a month later, we sued the state over its suppressor ban, with SAF, the NRA, with our friends at the American Suppressor Association, and it’s worth pointing out that the planning for that lawsuit started at the Gun Rights Policy Conference last year in San Diego.”
It was a perfect example of the kind of networking for which the annual GRPC is well-known in the Second Amendment community. This was the 40th annual event, held in Salt Lake City, with representatives from gun rights organizations all over the country, and grassroots activists from many states, attending at their own expense.
LaPorto reminded them of the important election happening in November. The Garden State will elect a new governor, and LaPorto is hopeful a Republican will win.
“We are considered a purple state at the moment and we think that momentum is going to carry into 2025 for our state election this year and hopefully we will elect a Republican governor this fall,” he said.
In that race, former Republican State Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli is squaring off against Democrat Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill to succeed outgoing anti-gun Democrat Gov. Phil Murphy, who is term-limited.
While that race will be decided by voters next month, work will continue in the Garden State, LaPorto said.
One major project underway currently is the effort to get local municipalities to refund their share of the $200 state-established carry permit fee. This fee was adopted in the aftermath of the 2022 Bruen ruling by the Supreme Court, and LaPorto described the scenario as lawmakers trying to make the process as difficult as possible for gun owners.
He also reported that his group has been doing research which suggests the new gun law is discriminatory, because it appears black citizens are 10 times more likely to have their permit application denied as a white applicant.
“This isn’t just about gun control,” he observed, “it’s about controlling a certain population demographic.”
By making the fee $200, the state is also discriminating against lower income citizens.
“The idea of hiding a core constitutional right behind a paywall should be offensive to everyone,” LaPorto said. “Everyone should agree that that’s an immoral practice.”
Fortunately, with help from the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms and National Rifle Association, the effort to have local municipalities return their 75% ($150) of the fee to applicants is working. In some cases, at the local level, support for the scheme is bipartisan. He noted with some pride that one county in Virginia is apparently nixing the permit fee for applicants.
