New Jersey just can’t let the “smart gun” mandate die. The original legislation called for all guns sold in the state to be limited to authorized-user-only types within three years of a first example becoming available. When the Armatix iP1 appeared briefly last year, it looked as though that clock would start ticking.
State Sen. Loretta Weinberg has concluded (after 13 years) that the law is actually stifling the technology and is offering a new version: The three-year fuse now attaches to offering a smart gun for sale in all Garden State gun shops once a working sample reaches the market.
We’ve shot the iP1 (very few have—we’ll tell you about it here soon), and are perfectly content to let the market decide. But the real point is that gun owners (and the NRA) are against mandates, not technology.
