NJ Imprisons Gunowner Who Broke No Laws

[Leadeye]

NJ has been playing this game for a long time. The NRA went after them in the 80s as the NJSP was picking off people traveling through the state on thier way to hunt elsewhere. You are an oppourtunity for the local government when you travel there, best avoided if possible. You don't want to be the "stuff that falls off trucks."

 

[beararms1776]

His mother should have known better. Makes you wonder if she would have felt better about his stability if he was a hard criminal. I bet she feels like a queen now that he's imprisoned. Just friggin ruin the guys life on a phone call.

 

[ultraspec]

If he was found in possession of hi cap mags he is at least guilty of that. Even as an Leo I cannot go into NJ with a high capacity magazine without breaking the law. Also until last week I could not go into NJ as an out of state LEO with hollow points in my mags. HR 218 was just amended to allow hp possession by out of state Leo in NJ but the high cap mag restriction wasn't changed AFAIK.

 

[ultraspec]

nneneeneedneedless to say obviously justice was not served by sending this guy to prison.

 

[Roadie]

He called the NJ State Police and was told he was good to go, but the Judge ruled that info inadmissible..

WTH

 

[Deadly Z Driver]

Bump for more support!

 

[mrjarrell]

If you'd like to stay abreast of Brian's case and what's going on there's a Facebook page. There's currently a campaign on to write to Gov. Christie to try and get him to pardon Brian. So far the governor has done nothing (he's likely an anti-gun republicrat), but there's always hope that he'll see the light of day. There's also contact info for Brian, too. I'm sure he'd like to know that there are people out here that have his interests in mind. He's just one of many 2nd Amendment political prisoners we've had, and have, in this country.

Free Brian Aitken | Facebook

 

[jdhaines]

Jury nullification seems to have been absent.

+1

If anyone isn't clear on what this is, you should be, it could have made this whole thing a non-issue.

Read the information by Fully Informed Jury Association
specifically this handbook

 

[henktermaat]

Looks like he ran afoul of the law there. It's a tangled mess of 2A infringement, but it looks like 'hi-cap" mags and hollowpoints are illegal either in the car or all the time.

 

[srad]

link to Philly Examiner newspaper article

Family: New Jersey man serving 7 years for guns he owned legally | Philadelphia Daily News | 11/30/2010

 

[BigMatt]

7 years is a harsh sentence, but he should have been aware of the state laws before going there.

 

[Roadie]

7 years is a harsh sentence, but he should have been aware of the state laws before going there.

I would suggest re-reading the entire article..

The Judge suppressed the fact that there is an exception for transporting, and would not LET the jury use it in considering Brian's fate.

 

[BigMatt]

I would suggest re-reading the entire article..

The Judge suppressed the fact that there is an exception for transporting, and would not LET the jury use it in considering Brian's fate.

"He also was charged with having "large capacity" magazines and hollow-point bullets"

I'm not saying the law is right, but he was breaking NJ law.

 

[Roadie]

"He also was charged with having "large capacity" magazines and hollow-point bullets"

I'm not saying the law is right, but he was breaking NJ law.

...but the NJ law allows for those objects to be in the home, just not carried, if I understand correctly. Therefore, it should have been covered under the transportation exception. Also, those charges got him just a few months, the carrying of the weapon itself got him the 7 years, if I read it correctly.

 

[BigMatt]

...but the NJ law allows for those objects to be in the home, just not carried, if I understand correctly. Therefore, it should have been covered under the transportation exception. Also, those charges got him just a few months, the carrying of the weapon itself got him the 7 years, if I read it correctly.

Hmmm, I'll check that out, but I got the impression that posession of those items in the home or out of the home was illegal.

Reading.....

 

[BigMatt]

OK, posession of "large capacity" magazines is illegal even in your home in NJ.

 

[Roadie]

OK, posession of "large capacity" magazines is illegal even in your home in NJ.

Ah, I misread it then, mea culpa..

Then the most he should have been charged with is the 9 month sentence for the magazines, and the Judge should be fired for suppressing legal precedent.

 

[dross]

If the law is unjust, then forcing negative consequences on a person for the act is unjust.

 

[BigMatt]

If the law is unjust, then forcing negative consequences on a person for the act is unjust.

Agreed. However, you just can't disregard even unjust laws and not expect to be punished.

 

[Amishman44]

He called the NJ State Police and was told he was good to go, but the Judge ruled that info inadmissible..

WTH

This is the biggest problem I see with the entire situation...the guy calls the NJSP...was told he was 'ok' with this situation, then has a couple of guys come along who think differently about the situation and twist it around to avoid the truth (disallowed statements that would have clarified the guy's situation) and pushed it through for a conviction.

The guy had to give permission for them to search his car, but with the 'approval' of a NJSP officer regarding his guns, he probably didn't think twice about letting them search it as he had already been told that what he was doing was 'ok.'

As I read the reporter's statements, I see this more as a 'frame-up' job, one that was used to make an 'example' out of him rather than educate people as to NJ law and help them to be in compliance.

I missed an off-ramp in Phillidelphia one time and 'accidently' ended up in NJ...couldn't make a left-hand turn to save my life (still haven't figured out why they have that problem)...got turned around and back on the highway and got the heck out...'nough said!!!