In a matter of first impression, the New Jersey Appellate Division found that state law restricting the purchase of a firearm in the interest of the “public health, safety or welfare” is constitutional and does not violate the Second Amendment.

Judge Richard J. Geiger, writing for the court, stated that after considering the “historical traditions and analogues present and leading up to ratification of the Second Amendment” in the U.S. Supreme Court decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, the court held that the state’s law, N.J.S.A. 2C:58-3(c)(5), ”is consistent with this Nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation,” and that those engaged in repetitive misconduct, even without being convicted of a crime or felony, are not the “law-abiding citizens” protected by the Second Amendment.