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I faxed this letter to my local chief of police Thursday after 10 weeks of runaround on changing an address on an ID card. If I don't have an answer by election day I'm sending a registered letter to the mayor with a copy of the fax, including the date/time stamp from the fax.
Dear Chief;
I am writing to see if you can help me ascertain the
status of my application for transfer of a New Jersey
Firearms ID card.
Ten weeks ago I dropped off my Firearms ID card and
the appropriate paperwork given to me by the Fanwood
Police Dept. so that I could transfer the card to
reflect my current address here in town.
As a bit of background, the card was originally issued
circa 1989 here in Fanwood, and when I moved to Scotch
Plains a few years back I had the card reissued by the
Scotch Plains Police Dept. Now that I've bought a home
in town, I have attempted to move the card again.
I have been calling police headquarters and checking
about once a week since the third week after I dropped
off the paperwork. (It took Scotch Plains about that
long to issue a card when I lived there.)
I have been told "you're dealing with the state
police, it can take forever", and I've also been told
just this past week "we sent it over to Scotch Plains
on Sept. 20th, and we don't have it back yet."
This concerns me greatly. State law (N.J. S
2C:58-3(f)) provides a 30 day period for issuance of
the card. If the last response I received is correct,
it would appear that no processing was even begun on
the the paperwork for over 30 days.
Normally I'd be understanding of the fact that we're a
small town, and I'd wait. (Frankly, I'd also rather
see the police out patrolling than sitting in an
office doing paperwork.) However, we're now into
November, which is hunting season, and I hunt.
While the laws in New Jersey do provide that I don't
need a Firearms ID card while going hunting, my
experience has been that many law enforcement officers
(including my own brother) don't know that, or will
take the more cautious approach and detain someone
they encounter with a gun and no FID. Further, if I
need the services of a gunsmith, or wish to take
advantage of a seasonal sale, I can't do so without my
card.
I hope you can appreciate the position I'm in now that
we're into November; if you can give me any more
definitive of an answer on the status of my card, I'd
greatly appreciate it.
Thanks for listening!
Very truly yours,
Robert J. Magnan
Dear Chief;
I am writing to see if you can help me ascertain the
status of my application for transfer of a New Jersey
Firearms ID card.
Ten weeks ago I dropped off my Firearms ID card and
the appropriate paperwork given to me by the Fanwood
Police Dept. so that I could transfer the card to
reflect my current address here in town.
As a bit of background, the card was originally issued
circa 1989 here in Fanwood, and when I moved to Scotch
Plains a few years back I had the card reissued by the
Scotch Plains Police Dept. Now that I've bought a home
in town, I have attempted to move the card again.
I have been calling police headquarters and checking
about once a week since the third week after I dropped
off the paperwork. (It took Scotch Plains about that
long to issue a card when I lived there.)
I have been told "you're dealing with the state
police, it can take forever", and I've also been told
just this past week "we sent it over to Scotch Plains
on Sept. 20th, and we don't have it back yet."
This concerns me greatly. State law (N.J. S
2C:58-3(f)) provides a 30 day period for issuance of
the card. If the last response I received is correct,
it would appear that no processing was even begun on
the the paperwork for over 30 days.
Normally I'd be understanding of the fact that we're a
small town, and I'd wait. (Frankly, I'd also rather
see the police out patrolling than sitting in an
office doing paperwork.) However, we're now into
November, which is hunting season, and I hunt.
While the laws in New Jersey do provide that I don't
need a Firearms ID card while going hunting, my
experience has been that many law enforcement officers
(including my own brother) don't know that, or will
take the more cautious approach and detain someone
they encounter with a gun and no FID. Further, if I
need the services of a gunsmith, or wish to take
advantage of a seasonal sale, I can't do so without my
card.
I hope you can appreciate the position I'm in now that
we're into November; if you can give me any more
definitive of an answer on the status of my card, I'd
greatly appreciate it.
Thanks for listening!
Very truly yours,
Robert J. Magnan