New Jersey Gun Clubs Request Lower Court to Sort Out Magazine Ban & Assault Weapons Ban Lawsuits
Jose Nino
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The Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs (ANJRPC) recently requested the lower federal court to sort out its lawsuits taking on New Jersey’s magazine and assault firearms prohibitions. ANJRPC submitted motions for summary judgment and to exclude expert witness testimony in the cases on October 10, 2023.
Summary judgment is a petition for the court to issue a ruling in favor of one party without having to go to trial. Should this motion be granted, ANJRPC’s motion for summary judgment would settle the cases in favor of gun owners.
ANJRPC’s filing of a motion to exclude expert witness testimony is predicated on the argument that the State of New Jersey’s experts are trying to use polarizing and irrelevant rhetoric as opposed to sound legal argument in these cases.
If the lower court issues a ruling against the Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs on either of its motions, the cases will likely be appealed to the federal appeals court.
ANJRPC’s magazine prohibition lawsuit gained traction in 2022 when the US Supreme Court kicked it back to the lower federal court for reconsideration in the wake of the Bruen decision. The Bruen decision determined that the Second Amendment safeguards an individual’s right to carry a handgun for the purpose of self-defense outside of their home.
What’s at stake here is quite significant. Should these lawsuits be successful, the federal courts could likely set a national precedent where other magazine and assault weapons prohibitions on the books in other blue states could be struck down.
New Jersey is an anti-gun stronghold through and through. Per Guns & Ammo magazine’s best states for gun owners rankings, New Jersey is ranked in 49th place. There’s very little room for legislative activism in such a deep blue state. As a result, the courts will have to be the primary vehicles for bringing about significant change in the Garden State’s gun policy.
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