Senior Citizen Faces 3 Yr Minimum Sentence for Transporting 300-year-old Pistol

[Small Business Owner of Any Repute]

I'm all for sane gun control -- mandatory background checks, bans on automatic weapons and the like -- but there's nothing sane about New Jersey's gun laws if a 72-year-old man is in jail over a 300-year-old antique flintlock pistol.

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http://www.nationalreview.com/article/413990/new-jersey-man-faces-jail-time-transporting-antique-pistol-charles-c-w-cooke

[Stand With Israel. Crush Hamas]

No way does Christie not grant clemency in this case if he's convicted.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

A perfect example of why jury nullification is needed if this ever gets to trial.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Was going to just say what Ernest did.

[© tweed]

are prosecutors allowed to cut a deal below the mandatory minimum?

[Stand With Israel. Crush Hamas]

are prosecutors allowed to cut a deal below the mandatory minimum?

Only if they downgrade the charges.

[Sprouts Farmers Market ✘]

are prosecutors allowed to cut a deal below the mandatory minimum?

It wasn't the same law in effect so I don't know if this applies due to the lack of a minimum sentence, but remember this occurred in NJ not too long ago. I don't think so though. That was a lesser charge.

New Jersey probably has the most awful gun laws in the country. It's absolutely shameful. Real lot of good they're doing preventing all that Camden crime while these people keep getting charged. The governor better get involved.

According the online state newspaper poll, 92% don't think this should be illegal.

[Zioneer]

I'm in favor of mild gun control (background checks and denying violent ex-inmates/mental patients guns), but this is ridiculous.

[ag]

I haven´t seen a gun control law I did not like, but, yeah, this IS ridiculous. Prosecutors should be using their discretion here. It should never go to court. It should have never been started. The prosecutors doing this are dangerous idiots.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

This is a case of a prosecutor that needs to be relieved of his duties.  And he will at some point.  And this old dude won't be going to jail.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Is this prosecutor elected? If so he'll be gone.

[ingemann]

This have nothing to do with gun control, but everything to do with the American judicial system being the institutional equalant to Raymond Babbitt.

[NewYorkExpress]

While Gun Control is a great thing, there are limits, and going to prison for transporting a pistol that likely won't fire easily crosses them.

[bedstuy]

To be fair, the title of the article is kind of misleading.  Not surprising since this is an article from the extremely dishonest right-wing rag, the National Review.

The underlying offense is his failure to file the proper paperwork when he bought the gun.  If he had filed the proper paperwork, there wouldn't be an issue.  Also, he might have been confused because there are exemptions for antique rifles and shotguns, but not for antique handguns. 

That said, it seems like a good faith mistakes and he shouldn't face any jail time.  Maybe confiscating the gun and a small fine should be in order.  But, jail time seems a tad extreme. 

[Simfan34]

No one deserves to go to jail because they mistakenly "filed the wrong paperwork". However jury nullification is not a thing and should not happen here nor anywhere else.

[ag]

To be fair, the title of the article is kind of misleading.  Not surprising since this is an article from the extremely dishonest right-wing rag, the National Review.

The underlying offense is his failure to file the proper paperwork when he bought the gun.  If he had filed the proper paperwork, there wouldn't be an issue.  Also, he might have been confused because there are exemptions for antique rifles and shotguns, but not for antique handguns.  

That said, it seems like a good faith mistakes and he shouldn't face any jail time.  Maybe confiscating the gun and a small fine should be in order.  But, jail time seems a tad extreme.  

Well, yes, he did not file the paperwork. And if there were a law saying that paperwork has to be filed when defecating, he would have been guilty of violating that as well.  There can be no public interest in doing an exception for antique shotguns and not handguns. Nor there is any public interest that would be served by confiscating the gun. What should matter here is intention. As far as the guy  was concerned this object was no different from an antique chair. And, in fact, for all practical purposes it wasn't any different: in particular, the guy had no way of using it as a weapon (no bullets, no powder, no knowledge how to use it, no nothing). Whatever the letter of the law says, the law also gives prosecutors ample discretion to drop the case. They could have done it at any point - as, in fact, one of the officers in charge tried to do from the very beginning.  In addition to everything else, this is gratuitous misuse of public resources, which could have been spent catching and punishing real gun law violators.

So, whatever else you think of the National Review, they are absolutely right in this case.

Frankly, if I were an opponent of gun laws who happened to be a prosecutor, this is exactly how I would behave: trying to use the letter of the law to imprison innocent elderly gentlemen and cat ladies. I am pretty sure, that is exactly what the prosecutor is doing - trying to discredit the law.

[ag]

No one deserves to go to jail because they mistakenly "filed the wrong paperwork". However jury nullification is not a thing and should not happen here nor anywhere else.

Prosecutorial discretion is what is called for. Or, lacking that, a clemency from the governor and/or legislative action to eliminate the issue.

[Badger]

No one deserves to go to jail because they mistakenly "filed the wrong paperwork". However jury nullification is not a thing and should not happen here nor anywhere else.

Prosecutorial discretion is what is called for. Or, lacking that, a clemency from the governor and/or legislative action to eliminate the issue.

Yes and yes.

[Middle-aged Europe]

The prosecutor must be Inspector Javert.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Well the good news is that the charge against him has been dropped: http://www.courierpostonline.com/story/news/local/south-jersey/2015/02/25/prosecutor-gun-charge-van-gilder-dismissed/24021409/