TRENTON – Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg issued the following statement today on the governor’s veto of legislation (S-993) she sponsored that would have reduced the legal maximum capacity of ammunition magazines in New Jersey to 10 rounds:
“This was not feel-good legislation. It was not ‘reform in name only.’ And there is nothing ‘trivial’ about legislation that has been proven to save lives.
“While no single bill by itself is going to end gun violence, that does not mean we shouldn’t do what we can to make our communities safer. Forcing someone who is intent on killing to reload has proven to save lives by providing time for potential victims to escape or for someone to take down the shooter. This legislation would have gone a long way to strengthen the laws on our books, and the governor’s failure to take action begs the question of whether he is more concerned with appealing to the gun lobby than strengthening our laws.
“The fact is that we have taken steps to address mental health issues, including sending the governor legislation to require comprehensive background checks for gun purchasers. He rejected that legislation. We are more than willing to work with the governor on additional measures, but that is no reason not to outlaw high-capacity magazines that are more suitable for war than anything else.
“High-capacity magazines have no purpose other than to kill as many people as possible as quickly as possible. They do not belong on our streets. The governor’s veto is an insult to the families of gun violence victims who have fought to make sure that others did not have to suffer as they have. His veto is an insult to our residents who deserve additional protections.”