While I’m someone who believes the law should generally be upheld, I also have a fondness for acts of defiance. No, it doesn’t make sense to me, either. I blame my parents. Mom was a defiant sort, and Dad was a police officer.

Yes, my childhood was confusing.

Regardless, there are some acts of defiance we should all celebrate. A great example of that is what’s transpiring in New Jersey.

You see, despite the recent magazine ban, gun owners in the Garden State have decided to give their government the middle finger.

Thanks to a December 5 ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit, New Jersey’s ban on gun magazines that hold more than 10 rounds took effect on December 10. By that date, all owners of heretofore legal “large capacity magazines” (LCMs) were required to surrender them to police, render them inoperable, modify them so they cannot hold more than 10 rounds, or sell them to authorized owners. Those who failed to do so are guilty of a fourth-degree felony, punishable by a maximum fine of $10,000 and up to 18 months in prison.

How many of New Jersey’s 1 million or so gun owners have complied with the ban by turning LCMs in to law enforcement agencies? Approximately zero, judging from an investigation by Ammoland writer John Crump. Crump, an NRA instructor and gun rights activist, “reached out to several local police departments in New Jersey” and found that “none had a single report of magazines turned over.” He also contacted the New Jersey State Police, which has not officially responded to his inquiry. But “two sources from within the State Police,” speaking on condition of anonymity, said “they both do not know of any magazines turned over to their agency and doubted that any were turned in.”

I also contacted the state police, where Sgt. Jeff Flynn told me they have received “zero” LCMs. Flynn said I should address any other questions about the law to the Attorney General’s Office, which I did. Leland Moore, a spokesman for the Attorney General’s Office, said I should talk to the state police. Crump got the same runaround. When I pointed that out, Moore said by email, “We do not have information on how many LCMs have been received by local police in the hundreds of municipalities across NJ. That’s not something we track.”

Law enforcement agencies, of course, would not necessarily know about gun owners who complied with the law in one of the other approved ways. It’s possible that some gun owners destroyed their suddenly illegal magazines, modified them, or transferred them to, say, gun owners in other states or retired cops, who are exempt from the magazine ban. But there is no direct evidence of that either.

I sincerely doubt many magazines were transferred or destroyed.

Instead, they’re being held onto, probably in hopes that this stupid law will soon be overturned. After all, the right to keep and bear arms is supposed to be uninfringeable, yet New Jersey doesn’t seem to understand what the word “infringe” means. Or, more accurately, the state doesn’t care. A good slam from the Supreme Court would be beneficial.

Or, the magazines are being held onto because it’s better to be tried by 12 than carried by six.

Contrary to what some may think, magazine restrictions don’t benefit the good guys in any way. They don’t reduce crime. They don’t make violent crime less lethal. They don’t accomplish anything except turn ordinary Americans into felons. Oh, and they can get people killed.

Anti-gunners love to look at how many rounds police officers fire in an armed encounter to illustrate how ineffective citizen carry is, but they don’t understand what they’re seeing. Armed encounters are frantic and dynamic. Misses come easy, especially when you’re used to practicing on a static range.

As a result, you need to carry a lot more ammo than you think.

Magazine restrictions hurt law-abiding citizens and make it harder for them to defend themselves.

With that in mind, there’s no reason to be surprised that New Jersey residents aren’t flocking to turn in their magazines. Being in prison beats in a coffin any day of the week.

Hat tip: Breitbart