In New Jersey, residents who want to transport firearms legally must request a permit from a local law enforcement office and produce a letter stating why it is necessary for them to carry a gun. In other words, New Jerseyans have to prove need before exercising what many Americans consider a constitutional right.***
Now, protesters across the state are organizing a push for an appeal for the court’s ruling. A “Free Brian Aitken” Facebook page has almost 7,000 fans, the website briandaitken.com was built and a rally will be held Dec. 12, in Towns River, N.J. Aitken’s family is asking Chris Christie to grant clemency — gun control just might be the next test conservatives throw at the New Jersey governor.
A pardon from Christie is far from assured, even if he does have fairly established, conservative credentials.
During his 2009 campaign, he told Fox News host Sean Hannity, “Listen, at the end of the day, what I support are common sense laws that will allow people to protect themselves. But I also am very concerned about the safety of our police officers on the streets. Very concerned. And I want to make sure that we don’t have an abundance of guns out there.”
A lot of people are watching this case, and are hoping that the Governor does the right thing.
Tim Lynch, president of the Cato Institute’s Project on Criminal Justice, agreed. “This is a guy who seemed at every step, was trying to do the right thing,” he told TheDC. “This was an overreaction from arrest to prosecution … seems to be an exercise of extremely poor judgment.”
“When you look at it from the totality … no serious person could think that he’s [Aitken] a criminal, that he was doing anything other than trying to take his lawful possessions and move with them to New Jersey,” Neily said. “What else was he supposed to do with them?”
Both Lynch and Neily said without hesitation that Christie should pardon Aitken. Neily even went so far as to say this single issue could change his entire opinion of Christie – someone he has so far supported.
The Caller reports that Christie is aware of the case, and a formal application for pardon has been received. A spokesman for the governor declined to comment any further.
December, 2, 2010 at 11:26 am
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by SirJaxx, Gabriel Malor, Nice Deb, Paul Milford, Benjamin Howe and others. Benjamin Howe said: PLEASE do. | RT @NiceDeb: @GovChristie Asked To Pardon NJ Man Sentenced To 7 Years For Gun Law Violations: http://wp.me/p4OSU-7P2 #tcot [...]
December, 3, 2010 at 3:03 pm
Why are they agitating to pardon one guy who broke that BS law and not agitating to change the law?
Instead of trying to make themselves free they’re begging for a bone from their master.
December, 3, 2010 at 3:17 pm
Well, free the guy, first…then amend the stupid law.
December, 3, 2010 at 9:24 pm
Why are they agitating to pardon one guy who broke that BS law and not agitating to change the law?
Because he didn’t break that particular law.
December, 4, 2010 at 10:37 am
He had guns illegally in NJ. He didn’t get permission from his masters.
He broke their anti-freedom laws and the NJ subjects are trying to get one guy with a compelling story freed instead of talking about changing the laws.
They have people riled up and instead of getting agitated for changing the law they’re begging their master for a bone.
I have no sympathy.
I go to NY and NH a few times a year.
Most of my guns are legal in NH as well as VA, but many are not legal in MD, NJ, NY and Mass so I don’t bring them even though it is legal to properly transport guns that are legal where you start and where you end.
Because NJ and Mass will confiscate them if they find them and then I have to spend the next 2 years and thousands of dollars getting my property back.
I have absolutely no sympathy for states that have allowed this to happen. I watched it happen, close up, in NY.
It’s the fault of the people who live there. They now have a chance to change the laws, but they aren’t even trying.
December, 4, 2010 at 1:32 pm
He had guns illegally in NJ.
I know you’re making more of a philosophical point, but the guns weren’t illegal if he was truly moving.
He broke their anti-freedom laws and the NJ subjects are trying to get one guy with a compelling story freed instead of talking about changing the laws.
In New Jersey? I think getting a pardon is about all you can reasonably hope for.
December, 5, 2010 at 8:31 am
Yes they were illegal. If they weren’t illegal, he wouldn’t need to be pardoned.
You need to ask permission in NJ to own guns, he didn’t get permission from his masters.
I bought my guns legally in VA, if I moved to NJ I would be a multiple felon unless I first first begged my masters for the privilege of keeping my property.
My point is that they have the OUTRAGE!!!!! on their side and instead of trying to use it to change those anti-freedom laws, they’re begging their masters for a bone.
And that’s why I left NY. They accept far too high a level of unfreedom for me and they seem to want it.
December, 5, 2010 at 11:57 am
Yes they were illegal. If they weren’t illegal, he wouldn’t need to be pardoned.
If he was moving, then his possession of the guns was legal, even in NJ. The court claims he wasn’t moving, despite contrary evidence. That’s why he needs the pardon.
If he wasn’t moving, then what you say is correct, but then he was foolish not to comply with the law. Although that sentence seems freaking outrageous.
December, 5, 2010 at 5:32 pm
From the original article:
In the Garden State, Aitken was required to have a purchaser’s permit from New Jersey to own the guns and a carry permit to have them in his car.
He had moved to NJ months earlier and did not get the proper permits for owning those guns.
He was moving from his parent’s house in NJ to another place in NJ at that time so he had no right to have the guns in NJ.
If they had been legal he probably wouldn’t have received the transporting charge.
December, 5, 2010 at 8:45 pm
He had moved to NJ months earlier and did not get the proper permits for owning those guns.
So the prosecutor claims. Seems to me his parents’ house was a temporary pause on the way to his actual residence.
December, 6, 2010 at 11:39 am
According to the article, so he claims.
December, 6, 2010 at 9:34 pm
According to the article, so he claims.
But the Philly.com article makes it seem much more ambiguous.
December, 21, 2010 at 1:37 am
[...] a Facebook page was set up to support his cause: Free Brian Aikin, attracting over 15,000 fans. As I mentioned previously, a lot of conservatives were watching this case, and hoping that Christie would do the right thing. [...]