New Jersey Democrats are responding to a federal court smackdown of the state’s “assault weapons” ban with a new plan: more gun control.
The Third Circuit Court of Appeals struck down New Jersey’s ban on July 17, ruling it unconstitutional under the Supreme Court’s Bruen standard. That standard requires gun regulations to have historical roots in America’s founding-era traditions — and New Jersey’s ban failed the test.
Instead of accepting the ruling, Democrats in Trenton are already drafting workarounds.
Assembly Majority Leader Lou Greenwald is pledging a new law forcing gun owners to store their firearms “unloaded and locked” inside their own homes.
“[It’s] the next thing I’m looking to do. The major cause of injury in someone’s home is through a gun that is stored improperly.”
Greenwald didn’t cite evidence for that claim — but he’s moving forward anyway.
The Third Circuit’s ruling was clear: New Jersey’s ban on so-called “assault weapons” violated the Second Amendment because the state couldn’t prove a historical tradition of banning commonly-owned firearms. The Bruen test, handed down by the Supreme Court in 2022, requires that any gun regulation mirror restrictions that existed at America’s founding or in the decades immediately after.
New Jersey couldn’t meet that burden. The court sided with gun-rights advocates who argued the ban targeted firearms that millions of law-abiding Americans own for self-defense, hunting, and sport.
But Democrats aren’t backing down. According to Politico, party leaders are strategizing on how to “maneuver around an unfavorable legal precedent and put newly reworked restrictions in place.”
Assemblyman Brian Bergen, a Republican, warned that New Jersey Democrats are about to flood the legislature with gun-control bills that distract from real issues.
“We’re constantly wasting time, energy, money focused on things that are settled business. The ruling happened, it’s the ruling. They can challenge it. But what I don’t want to see them do is throw all kinds of bills against the wall to see what sticks.”
Bergen’s concern: Democrats will prioritize symbolic gun-control fights over addressing the state’s actual problems — high taxes, cost of living, and crumbling infrastructure.
The Bruen ruling has become a roadblock for blue-state gun restrictions nationwide. Courts in California, New York, Illinois, and now New Jersey have had to strike down or narrow gun laws that can’t pass the historical test.
But instead of adjusting to the new constitutional landscape, Democrats in states like New Jersey are responding with creative workarounds — new laws designed to survive Bruen while still restricting access to firearms.
Greenwald’s storage mandate is the latest example. If passed, it would require gun owners to keep firearms unloaded and locked away in their own homes — even for self-defense purposes. Critics argue that defeats the entire point of owning a firearm for home protection: you can’t access it quickly when you need it.
The fight over New Jersey’s gun laws is far from over. Democrats are pledging new bills. Republicans are promising resistance. And Second Amendment advocates are preparing for the next round of court battles.
