Christie proposes gun laws including sniper rifle ban
Classroom security is not part of the bill
TRENTON, N.J. – Gov. Chris Christie on Friday unveiled a multifaceted plan to curb gun violence in New Jersey that includes expanding government-funded mental health treatment, requiring parental sign-off before children can buy or rent violent video games and mandating that ID presented by would-be gun-owners is government-issued.
The Republican’s plan also includes a ban on the sale of Barrett .50-caliber semi-automatic sniper rifles, bail reforms that would make it harder for people suspected of violent gun crimes to be released and provisions to make it easier for courts and health care professionals to involuntarily commit people they consider violent to a psychiatric hospital.
The plan does not address classroom security or propose stricter limits on the capacity of ammunition magazines, which in New Jersey stands at 15 rounds.
“Assuring that there are common-sense safety measures when it comes to purchasing guns, and enforcing appropriate and aggressive criminal penalties for those who violate gun laws is not enough,” Christie said at a news conference at the state Capitol announcing the measures. “This is about violence control. In order to deal with the kind of violence we’re seeing, we must address the many contributing factors to that violence.”
Christie announced the proposals one week after receiving a report from a task force he created following the Newtown, Conn., school shooting.
The group recommended the periodic renewal of gun licenses and a law banning people from buying guns for others. It also recommended helping those with mental illness.
The governor’s proposals come two days after the Senate in Washington rejected expanding background checks to more gun sales. Members of the Democrat-controlled state Legislature proposed their own gun laws, none of which has reached the governor’s desk. The Assembly in February fast-tracked 22 bills that place limits on magazine sizes, require mental health clearances and photo IDs for gun permits, and bar anyone on the federal terrorist watch list from obtaining a gun.
New Jersey’s gun laws are among the strictest in the nation. The state does not allow gun shows, for example, and is one of seven states with an assault-weapon ban and one of three with a one-gun-a-month law. New Jersey is also one of 11 states with a waiting period for gun purchases and one of seven with a limit on magazine capacity.