New Jersey is one of the most gun-controlled states in the nation. It’s not the kind of place you want to live if you’re a gun person, that’s for sure. Not only does the state heavily restrict guns, but it also makes it virtually impossible to get a carry permit and restricts the most common forms of self-defense ammunition on the market.

Despite all this, New Jersey has more than its fair share of crime in places like Jersey City.

It seems that despite all the state’s gun laws, criminals have made a living by bringing guns into the state for black market sales.

ATF agents busted a convicted felon who they said trafficked guns to Jersey City that were used in crimes, including at least one shooting.

A federal judge in Georgia ordered Jonathan Brown, 26, held Wednesday pending a detention hearing this Friday after special agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives arrested him on gun trafficking charges, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Craig Carpenito said.

As an ex-con with several previous convictions, Brown, of Covington, GA, couldn’t buy the firearms himself, so he used straw purchasers in and around Georgia, then trafficked the weapons to Jersey City to be resold, Carpenito said.

Several people arrested in Jersey City within months of Brown’s visits were caught with guns bought by the straw purchasers, the U.S. attorney said.

…

All told, authorities have so far recovered seven guns trafficked by Brown to Jersey City, he said.

I’m shocked and appalled by this. Totally stunned, to be sure.

I mean, criminals are known to be such law-abiding people, you know? If you can’t trust an ex-con to follow the law, then just who the hell can you trust, am I right?

OK, seriously now, let’s face facts here. The only reason Brown was able to do this was because of New Jersey’s ultra-strict gun control laws. The state made it profitable for him to run guns into the state. It’s why gun control will always be a vain hope at best. So long as there is a demand for guns, someone will supply them.

Now, most of these guns were going to criminals, so it’s not like these are people who would have been able to buy guns in a gun store in any other state, most likely, but that’s also beside the point. Brown ran guns because it was profitable to do so.

Frankly, guns are always going to be profitable. There will always be a demand and if you don’t think there will be, you’re not paying attention. Criminals want guns and they’ll pay to get them.

However, Brown himself proves the futility of gun control laws. This is a gun runner who was, himself, prohibited from buying guns. So, he got a proxy to do it for him, thus allowing firearms to flow between Georgia and New Jersey. The laws didn’t stop him in the least. As I already mentioned, they may well have encouraged him.

Yet you won’t hear anyone on the other side acknowledge that little fact, will you?

No, they’ll blame Georgia for not having tougher gun laws despite the fact that Brown couldn’t buy one anyway.