TRENTON – Assemblywomen Nancy Munoz and Michele Matsikoudis introduced a bill package this week cracking down on the proliferation of ghost guns in New Jersey, as well as conversion kits turning pistols into machine guns, as recommended by the State Commission of Investigation in a recent report.
“Ghost guns have become a significant public safety problem that cannot be ignored. Criminals are finding ways to evade law enforcement, skirt the rules to fabricate guns for violence, and make deadly weapons even deadlier,” Munoz (R-Union) said.
Ghost guns are homemade firearms that are difficult to trace because they lack serial numbers. Although they have been illegal in New Jersey since 2018, the printing plans to build the guns are easily found online. They can be assembled and operational in about an hour. According to the commission’s report, law enforcement agencies went from recovering just 55 ghost guns statewide in 2019, to recovering one nearly every day in 2023.
Asw. Munoz andAsw. Matsikoudis introduced seven bills on October 21 to close identified gaps in state law, including criminalizing the possession of machine gun conversion devices (A4890) and printing plans to illegally build firearms (A4917). Another measure (A4918) makes discharging weapons in public a crime.
“These bills target the serial criminals who are perpetuating a disproportionate amount of violence in this state. The same gun is being used in multiple shootings, because the owner is unknown and escaping justice. Additionally, more innocent bystanders are being killed because inexpensive conversion kits are making gunfire more erratic,” Asw. Matsikoudis (R-Union) said.
The lawmakers also say the unintended consequences of the state’s 2017 bail reform law are contributing to the revolving door of criminals in New Jersey. One of the bills (A4919) amends that law to ensure ballistic evidence is considered prior to pretrial release, and another (A4920) weighs certain gun offenses more heavily in pretrial detention decisions.
The final two pieces of legislation expand training for law enforcement officers to help them more easily detect gun conversion devices (A4921) and require the attorney general to include gun activity that does not cause bodily injury in shooting data (A4922).
“Now that we have identified the massive problem of illegal firearms, New Jersey’s laws need to catch up to the criminals,” Asw. Munoz said. “I urge Legislative leaders to move the bill package quickly so we can better protect the people of New Jersey.”
