Federal concealed-carry bill would make Jersey more dangerous


philly.com/philly/opinion/commentary/concealed-carry-gun-control-norcross-20170913.html

By Louis Cappelli Jr.9/13/2017

In 2016, throughout the United States, firearms killed more than 33,000 people, and on average we saw more than one mass shooting a day. More than 90 lives a day — one every 16 minutes — are taken by a gun, which includes suicide, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Firearms are the third leading killer among children in our nation and men between the ages of 19 and 34, the CDC reports. Each year, more than 130,000 people are shot.

As overwhelming as these numbers are, the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2017, making its way through Congress, would force states to recognize concealed-carry firearms permits issued by other states — even if local laws prohibit issuing such permits to our own residents. Not only would this ill-conceived legislation undermine the gun-control laws New Jersey has worked to pass, but it would also impede our state’s ability to make its own laws and to enforce them in the way we see fit.

In New Jersey, we have worked to pass some of the toughest gun-control legislation in the country, and we cannot afford to have those efforts rolled back by an overreaching federal law that would put the safety of our citizens and law enforcement officers in jeopardy.

In a nation where many of our elected officials are in the pocket of the National Rifle Association, buying a gun has become as easy as walking down the street and buying a gallon of milk. Because many of our lawmakers refuse to stand up to the NRA, we have experienced a slow and dangerous creep of access to tools that are being used to compromise our community and law enforcement. This federal bill would be another vehicle that would allow special interests to sell more guns in a nation where 300 million firearms are already in circulation. This makes me sick.

In the last five years alone, more than 180 police officers have been killed by firearms in the line of duty. Recent efforts that Camden County has spearheaded, such as a gun-buyback program that took more than 4,000 unwanted guns off the streets, were intended to make our police officers’ jobs safer and easier. When we have strict standards for who can carry a firearm and how, it keeps our officers from having to make unnecessary and time-consuming ....

Published: September 13, 2017 — 3:01 AM EDT | Updated: September 13, 2017 — 6:49 AM EDT