Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN News

Licensed Security Guard Arrested Under New Jersey’s Self-Defense Ammunition Ban

Monday, March 9, 2020

Licensed Security Guard Arrested Under New Jersey’s Self-Defense Ammunition Ban

With cases like those of Shanneen Allen, Brian Aitken, Gordon Van Gilder, Hisashi Pompey, and many others, New Jersey has a well-earned reputation for malevolent gun prosecutions. As bad as those cases were, the Garden State may have just bested their own record for malice with a new low in anti-gun oppression.

According to a report from Ammoland.com, armored car security guard Roosevelt Twyne was driving home from a shift in early February when he was pulled over in Roselle Park, N.J., allegedly for a window tint violation. At the time, Twyne was carrying a handgun loaded with Hornady Critical Duty ammunition. As he is a security guard, Twyne has a valid New Jersey permit to carry a handgun.

New Jersey is a may-issue carry permit state. Most applicants are required to justify their need for a permit to carry. N.J.S.A. 2C:58-4 requires,

Each application form shall be accompanied by a written certification of justifiable need to carry a handgun, which shall be under oath and, in the case of a private citizen, shall specify in detail the urgent necessity for self-protection, as evidenced by specific threats or previous attacks which demonstrate a special danger to the applicant's life that cannot be avoided by means other than by issuance of a permit to carry a handgun. Where possible, the applicant shall corroborate the existence of any specific threats or previous attacks by reference to reports of the incidents to the appropriate law enforcement agencies.

Additional burdens in the application process include a fingerprinting requirement and a requirement to obtain three personal references. Even after complying with all of these measures, the permit is only valid for a two-year period. 

According to Ammoland.com, despite being one of the few individuals with a New Jersey carry permit, Twyne was arrested and charged with illegal transportation of a firearm.

Further, Twyne was reportedly charged with violating New Jersey’s prohibition on hollow-point self-defense ammunition. N.J.S.A. 2C:39-3states,

Any person, other than a law enforcement officer or persons engaged in activities pursuant to subsection f. of N.J.S.2C:39-6, who knowingly has in his possession any hollow nose or dum-dum bullet…  is guilty of a crime of the fourth degree.

New Jersey is the only state that prohibits hollow-point self-defense ammunition.

Millions of American gun owners choose to use hollow-point self-defense ammunition to protect themselves and those around them. In District of Columbia v. Heller, U.S. Supreme Court made clear that the Second Amendment protects the right to keep and bear arms “in common use” for lawful purposes. As this ammunition is a favorite choice of Americans for the lawful purpose of self-defense, New Jersey’s law is unconstitutional.

However, at the time of his arrest, Twyne was carrying Hornady Critical Duty ammunition in his handgun. Hornady Critical Duty ammunition uses a projectile with what Hornady calls a “Flextip” polymer filling. The projectile does not have a “hollow nose.”

Understanding that Hornady Critical Defense did not meet the definition of “hollow nose” ammunition under N.J.S.A. 2C:39-3, the New Jersey State Police issued the following guidance on their Firearm FAQS website

                  I’m not a police officer, are hollow points legal for me to possess? 

Yes. They are legal for purchase and possess in your home or on land owned by you.  They are legal to possess and use at a gun range.  They are also legal to possess while traveling to and from such places. Ammunition lacking a hollow cavity at the tip, such as those with a polymer filling, are not considered to be hollow point ammunition. An example of this can be seen with the Hornady Critical Defense / Critical Duty, Cor-Bon PowRball / Glaser Safety Slug and Nosler Inc. Defense ammunition.

Ammoland.com reported that after the arrest Twyne was suspended from his job. New Jersey’s rabid anti-gun politicians don’t seem to care how many innocent, productive lives their incomprehensible web of gun control laws upend.

IN THIS ARTICLE
New Jersey ammunition ban
TRENDING NOW
Third Circuit Strikes Some New Jersey Carry Restrictions in NRA Case

Thursday, September 11, 2025

Third Circuit Strikes Some New Jersey Carry Restrictions in NRA Case

Yesterday, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion in Siegel v. Platkin, striking some of the carry restrictions New Jersey enacted in response to the NRA’s landmark Supreme Court victory, New York State Rifle & ...

Gun Control “Journalist” Says the Quiet Part Out Loud

News  

Monday, September 8, 2025

Gun Control “Journalist” Says the Quiet Part Out Loud

Pure gun control. As in disarmament and banning of firearms. It’s rare that anti-gunners get straight to the exact point that we have been warning of for decades. 

The Desperate Deflection to the “Red State Murder Problem”

News  

Monday, September 8, 2025

The Desperate Deflection to the “Red State Murder Problem”

California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) may have thought he had scored against President Donald Trump in a recent war of words over rampant crime and the deployment of federal law enforcement agents to Democratic-led cities

Due Process: The Backbone of Legal Legitimacy

News  

Monday, September 8, 2025

Due Process: The Backbone of Legal Legitimacy

Close observers of the gun debate often see references to due process.

Illinois: Governor Signs Mandatory Firearm Storage Law

Wednesday, September 3, 2025

Illinois: Governor Signs Mandatory Firearm Storage Law

Earlier this month, Governor JB Pritzker signed Senate Bill 8 into law. This legislation imposes new mandatory firearm storage requirements on law-abiding gun owners.  

Update: North Carolina House Reschedules Veto Override Vote

Tuesday, August 26, 2025

Update: North Carolina House Reschedules Veto Override Vote

Today, the House rescheduled the veto override vote on Senate Bill 50, Freedom to Carry NC, to Monday, September 22. 

NRA Files Amicus Brief Urging SCOTUS to Hear Challenge to Washington’s Magazine Ban

Monday, September 8, 2025

NRA Files Amicus Brief Urging SCOTUS to Hear Challenge to Washington’s Magazine Ban

Today, the National Rifle Association filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to grant certiorari in a case challenging Washington State’s ban on firearm magazines that hold more than 10 rounds.

Just One More Step: Australia’s New Weapon Laws

News  

Monday, March 24, 2025

Just One More Step: Australia’s New Weapon Laws

Australia implemented a firearm ban and mandatory confiscation in 1996 pursuant to the National Firearms Agreement, in which nearly 700,000 privately-owned firearms were turned in to the government and destroyed. 

Florida: Second Amendment Sales Tax Holiday Signed by Governor

Monday, July 7, 2025

Florida: Second Amendment Sales Tax Holiday Signed by Governor

Governor Ron DeSantis recently signed the Florida Budget for Fiscal Year 2025–2026, which includes a Second Amendment sales tax holiday from September 8 through December 31, 2025. The NRA is thankful for Governor DeSantis’ strong ...

Supreme Court Review Sought in NRA-Backed Challenge to California’s Magazine Ban

Friday, August 15, 2025

Supreme Court Review Sought in NRA-Backed Challenge to California’s Magazine Ban

Today, a Petition for Certiorari was filed asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear Duncan v. Bonta, a case—backed by the National Rifle Association and California Rifle & Pistol Association—challenging California’s prohibition on magazines capable of holding ...

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.