In a sane world, this suit would be dismissed instantly, with prejudice.
New Jersey Sues California Company Over ‘Ghost Guns’
New Jersey’s attorney general has sued a California company that sells gun parts that can be turned into working firearms.The suit announced Friday alleges that U.S. Patriot Armory violated New Jersey’s consumer fraud laws when it advertised and sold gun parts to an undercover investigator last month.
The investigator bought parts for an AR-15 assault rifle.
New Jersey bans purchases of gun parts for use in making firearms with no serial numbers, called “ghost guns.” It’s also a crime to possess an unregistered assault firearm in the state.
First off, a nonfirearm transaction in California is subject to New Jersey law? I don’t think so.
There are a couple more problems. Let’s take a look at the law. The relevant section is this:
Purchasing firearm parts to manufacture untraceable firearm. In addition to any other penalty imposed under current law, a person who purchases separately or as a kit any combination of parts from which a firearm may be readily assembled with the purpose to manufacture an untraceable firearm is guilty of a crime of the third degree. Notwithstanding the provisions of N.J.S.2C:1-8 or any other law, a conviction under this subsection shall not merge with a conviction for any other criminal offense and the court shall impose separate sentences upon a violation of this subsection and any other criminal offense.
Fine; it’s unlawful for someone in New Jersey to purchase the parts. Sort of. It says nothing about the seller.
But the intent counts, too. The intent of the purchaser must be to assemble an assault firearm. Was it the intent of the undercover investigator to assemble such a firearm? Please say, “Yes,” because for once they didn’t include a law enforcement exemption. The investigator should be charged.
Ah, but what if the purchaser of parts lawfully own a firearm, and he wants to stock replacement parts for repairs? At least in this law, that’s perfectly lawful. Intent matters; mens rea.
For this to fly at all, the investigator would have had to specifically tell U.S. Patriot Armory that he was buying the parts with the intent of violating New Jersey law, making it a co-conspirator. Otherwise, for all the company knows, it was selling to a licensed individual building a lawful serialized gun, or repairing one.
Sadly, this is no longer a sane world, and the courts exemplify that.
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