The state of New Jersey’s so-called leadership has nothing but contempt for the Second Amendment. There are a handful of good legislators and “leaders” in the Garden State, but not enough to stop the freedom crushing measures that continually get introduced. As of late, the rude awakening of the last election seems to have opened some eyes, but apparently not enough, as Governor Phil Murphy’s radical anti-gun agenda is still being pushed after being successfully beaten down last session. The latest attack comes in the form of S-1893 – gunmaker liability legislation. Our friends over at the Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs (ANJRPC) have an important message about legislation that’s geared to attacking law abiding members of the firearms industry in a sneaky tactic.

Saturday, June 11. 2022.  Late yesterday, the NJ Senate Judiciary Committee amended its agenda for this Monday morning (June 13) to add a hearing on S-1893 – gunmaker liability legislation that turns well established principles of law on their head and allows the NJ attorney general to sue and harass firearms makers into oblivion even though they have made a perfectly legal, properly functioning product.

PLEASE IMMEDIATELY CONTACT EVERY NJ STATE SENATOR AND TELL THEM TO VOTE AGAINST S-1893 FOR THE FOLLOWING REASONS:

1. S1893 turns basic principles of law on their head and allows the manufacturer of a legal, properly functioning product to be sued for the misconduct of others.

 

2. S1893 is explicitly preempted by federal law (the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act) which forbids frivolous lawsuits against manufacturers.

 

3. S1893 potentially harms military and law enforcement by decimating the manufacturers of products needed in performance of their duties. 

 

4. S1893 empowers the NJ Attorney General to harass, investigate, and inflict serious damage on firearms manufacturers and dealers without having to prove any misconduct whatsoever.

-Empowers the NJ attorney general to arbitrarily investigate, compel testimony from, fine, impound records and inventory from, and prosecute firearms “industry” members nationwide. The term “industry members” is used misleadingly to disguise the fact that it affects a lot more than gun manufacturers. It also impacts sellers, dealers, marketers (including publications and websites containing advertisements), and certain firearms associations and societies.

-Subjects firearms associations, societies (including non-profits), publications and websites which sell or market (including via ads in publications or on websites) firearms, ammunition, or “accessories” (an undefined term) to the attorney general’s sweeping arbitrary powers.

-Removes any requirement that the attorney general first PROVE that a firearms “industry” member is directly responsible for any wrongdoing before arbitrary and capricious government powers can be wielded against that “industry” member. The attorney general merely needs to “believe” that its own actions are somehow justified, and nothing more. This enables purely political investigations, prosecutions, and government harassment against “industry” members, with no checks, balances, or other restraints to ensure integrity, consistency, or appropriateness of actions taken.

-Subjects firearms “industry” members nationwide to the NJ attorney general’s reach. S-1893 is really a trojan horse, empowering New Jersey bureaucrats to do an end-run around the Second Amendment by crippling or destroying “industry” members arbitrarily throughout the U.S. The powers it grants to the attorney general are not limited to NJ. Harassing “industry” members into oblivion nationwide is the apparent goal.

-Allows the attorney general to harass nearly everyone involved with firearms and firearms rights. That means manufacturers, dealers, parts sellers, marketers, websites, publications, advertisers, gun clubs, and gun rights organizations — all that is required is a loose connection to the manufacture, sale, or marketing / advertising of firearms, ammunition, parts or “accessories” (an undefined term). This allows the New Jersey attorney general to interfere with the exercise of gun rights nationwide, and to chill free speech by those offering firearms or even just accessories in digital and physical publications.

-Turns the NJ attorney general into the functional equivalent of a national gun czar, unchecked in its ability to impose its anti-Second Amendment views and dictates on an entire nation.

I took the time to write into the legislators. Honestly I think the lawmakers do need to hear from the citizens of New Jersey, but I also don’t think it would hurt if concerned citizens from other jurisdictions wrote in. Especially since this awful legislation would affect those in other states as well.

Bills like this are just misguided attempts to attack that which the progressive anti-freedom caucus cannot directly touch, the Second Amendment. Assaults like this I suspect will become more frequent should we get a favorable opinion in NYSRPA v. Bruen. Any way “they” can lash out, they will. We all need to brace for this potential in the years to come.

ANJRPC has the above recommendations on what to tell lawmakers, here’s a peek at my short missive to the public masters:

In a sneaky move, S-1893 got added to today’s Judiciary Committee agenda and I’m writing to tell you to not support it. This bill is nothing but a work around to attack the industry that supports the Second Amendment, which in turn attacks the Second Amendment itself.

This is not some harmless piece of legislation that is “needed”, in fact, its designed to harass industry members for the acts of criminals and madmen. Does the NJ legislature advocate that we attack liquor stores that sell booze to those that get into drunk driving wrecks because of their advertising or social media presence? Or how about the car manufactures?

An affirmative vote for this legislation would be bending a knee to Governor Phil Murphy’s radical agenda to break the Second Amendment. This not a bus you want to get on, regardless of your personal feelings. This last election proves it.

I also reminded them to keep the mic on and actually record those in opposition to the bill, unlike what they did to one citizen last December that testified at the Assembly Judiciary Committee.

There’s not a lot of time to reach out to the Senators on this one, so please click HERE for a list of all their email addresses for ease of writing them. Please remember to be polite and to the point. ANJRPC has the talking points nailed better than I do, so perhaps follow their lead.

For more information on the work that ANJRPC does, check them out at their homepage: https://www.anjrpc.org/