Federal judge blocks part of New Jersey concealed weapons law
New Jersey passed a new concealed weapons law last year after the Supreme Court ruled that the right to carry a gun is constitutionally protected.
However, that law ran into trouble this week after a federal judge temporarily blocked one of its provisions.
Ruling covers ban on weapons in "sensitive places"
According to the Daily Caller, Judge Renée Marie Bumb issued a temporary restraining order preventing the state from enforcing a ban on carrying weapons in areas the law designates as "sensitive places."
"Plaintiffs have shown that Defendants will not be able to demonstrate a history of firearm regulation to support any of the challenged provisions," Bumb wrote.
"The deprivation of Plaintiffs’ Second Amendment rights, as the holders of valid permits from the State to conceal carry handguns, constitutes irreparable injury, and neither the State nor the public has an interest in enforcing unconstitutional laws," she continued.
"Accordingly, good cause exists, and the Court will grant the motion for temporary restraints," the George W. Bush appointee concluded.
New Jersey welcomes it
Bumb's ruling was welcomed by New Jersey Senate Republican Leader Steven Oroho, who told the Daily Caller that the law was rushed and ill conceived.
"The federal judge’s ruling, which validates what we have been saying, is a victory for the 2nd Amendment and the rights of law-abiding citizens to protect themselves both in public and in private," he said. "We look forward to the offending provisions of the law being permanently struck down."
"This is another example of the important precedent found in language in the U.S. Supreme Court’s Bruen ruling last June," the Daily Caller quoted him as saying. "Clearly, New Jersey lawmakers have gone too far in crafting a law to get around the high court’s decision."
"Right-wing federal judge"
However, New Jersey's Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy reacted negatively to Bumb's ruling, with a spokesperson telling Politico that it was an "errant" decision from a "right-wing federal judge."
New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin was unimpressed as well, complaining that the ruling posed a threat to public safety.
“We are disappointed by the Court’s ruling, which is inconsistent with the Second Amendment and will make New Jerseyans considerably less safe,” Politico quoted Platkin as saying in a statement.
"But this temporary order is just that: temporary," he continued, adding, "And we look forward to continuing to press our case, including ultimately on appeal."
