Monmouth County Firearm Attorneys

“Travis Tormey is an outstanding attorney. He helped me tremendously, more so than I ever could have imagined. He handled all aspects of my case with compassion, respect, and immense competence. He is a skilled and knowledgeable lawyer who truly fights for his client’s best interest. I highly recommend Travis to anyone looking for a fantastic lawyer.”

Monmouth County Guns and Weapons Charges

Basically, you can be charged with a criminal offense for violating any of the multitude of weapons laws contained in Chapter 39 of the New Jersey Criminal Statutes. The range of weapons offenses you can be charged with is wide, including those for illegally possessing weapons such as rifles, shotguns, handguns, and air guns, as well as possessing illegal weapons such as assault firearms. You may also find yourself arrested for unlawfully transporting a weapon, possessing it for criminal purposes, defacing a firearm, or having a ghost gun or the parts needed to make a homemade gun in your home or elsewhere in or on your property. In some cases, a major federal investigation targeting weapons trafficking will lead to a bust that implicates multiple individuals and heads to federal court, as opposed to the Superior Court in Monmouth County where most cases involving state-issued weapons offenses are handled.

No matter what, you can expect to be charged with a felony, also known as an indictable crime, if you are the defendant in a weapons case. Nearly every criminal charge involving guns and weapons in the NJ code is an indictable offense of either the first degree, second degree, third degree, or fourth degree. However, depending on the crime you are charged with and the quality and experience of your attorney, you may be able to get your charge downgraded and remanded to the local municipal court where the penalties are substantially lowered.

Some of the weapons charges filed against you in Monmouth County may include, but are not limited to:

• Unlawful possession of a weapon – N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5
• Possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose – N.J.S.A. 2C: 39-4
• Unlawful Possession of a BB Gun, Airsoft Gun, or Pellet Gun – N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5(b)
• Unlawful Disposition of a Firearm – N.J.S.A. 2C:39-9
• Possession of a Gun at a School

MONMOUTH COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT HEARS AND DECIDES WEAPONS CASES

The New Jersey Superior Court, Monmouth County Criminal Division will handle any firearm related offenses brought against you by the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s office. The Criminal Division is located 71 Monument Park, Freehold NJ, 07728, is open from Mondays through Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and can be contacted at 732-677-4300. Click here for more information regarding the Monmouth County Superior Court Criminal Division. The Presiding Criminal Judge of Monmouth County is the Honorable David F. Bauman, P.J.Cr. and the Criminal Division Manager is Kristy Smith, who can be contacted at 732-358-8700 ext. 87418.

MONMOUTH COUNTY PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE

The Monmouth County Prosecutor’s office prosecutes weapons cases in the county and is located at 132 Jerseyville Avenue, Freehold NJ 07728 and can be reached at 732-431-7160. For more information on the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s office visit the link. They also agree to apply for Graves Act Waivers, which allow clients facing mandatory minimum sentences under the Graves Act to avoid those stringent requirements and potentially resolve their cases through Pre-Trial Intervention or probation.

Ways our Gun Lawyers Can Assist with Your Weapons Offense in Monmouth County

If you or a loved one has been charged with an offense involving guns or other weapons in Monmouth County NJ, we can help. Our experienced Monmouth County firearms defense lawyers have literally represented hundreds of clients in your situation with tremendous results. When you hire us, our gun defense attorneys represent your interests in a criminal weapons proceeding from start to finish. We explore possible defenses to the state’s charges as we investigate the evidence of what happened before, during, and after an arrest.

Depending on the facts, we can frequently detect unlawful behavior by law enforcement and then further investigate to find evidence supporting potential motions to suppress evidence the police obtained due to violations of your rights. We will also carefully review the state’s discovery to find unreliable evidence, discreditable witnesses, or other leads to investigate in weakening the case against you. You have the right to examine the state’s evidence against you, which you might not know without the help of a weapons defense lawyer with the background and skill to go the extra mile in finding your best defense.

You also have the right to cross-examine the state’s witnesses, which our attorneys are fully prepared to do should your case be decided at a trial by a jury of your peers, another constitutional right. As such, we will join the prosecution to pick juries that can be fair and impartial. To ensure you are treated fairly, our lawyers will expose any biases or mistakes that the prosecution’s witnesses reveal during trial. The U.S. Constitution also guarantees the right to a speedy trial, which our team can and will aggressively assert to avoid the prosecution’s delays. We may also waive this based on the circumstances to allow more time to build a strong defense. Regardless, we are tirelessly dedicated to protecting your rights at all phases of the criminal proceeding.

We Deliver Results in Monmouth County Weapon Cases

In fact, here is a case we handled for a client recently in Monmouth County. Our client was a truck driver and Ohio resident who legally purchased his weapon in Ohio but was not transporting the weapon legally when he was pulled over and arrested in New Jersey. As a result, he was arrested and charged with 2nd degree unlawful possession of a weapon which is punishable by 5-10 years in prison in New Jersey even if you have no prior criminal record. In addition, under the Graves Act, a defendant is subject to mandatory prison time and a period of parole ineligibility. For example, the typical plea offer for a first time offender caught with an illegal gun in NJ is 5 years in prison, 42 months to be served before becoming eligible to be released on parole.

In this case, our client had no prior criminal record and had legally purchased the weapon in Ohio. Thus, we submitted a compelling reasons package in support of a Graves Act waiver to try to get the client into a first time offender program known as Pre-Trial Intervention or “PTI”. This is a program reserved for first time offenders who have never been in any trouble before. It is usually reserved for lower level felony crimes in NJ (third or fourth degree). However, in certain scenarios like this one, a defendant may be able to get PTI on a 2nd degree unlawful possession of a weapon charge in NJ. PTI is a fantastic option in these cases because the defendant avoids the mandatory jail time and a felony record if they successfully complete the PTI probation – the charges are dismissed.

We gathered all of the supporting evidence to submit in our PTI mitigation package which included the following:

• Legal documents for purchase of weapon in Ohio (receipt)
• Any gun permits the client has from his home state or other states
• Proof of employment
• Travel documents (why he was in New Jersey)
• Character letters and references

Once the assistant prosecutor receives the mitigation package, they will review it and then discuss it with the supervisors in their office to determine whether or not they will accept the client into the PTI program. Luckily, in this case, they agreed.

Then, we applied the client for PTI and did a PTI interview with probation. A PTI application fee of $75 must be paid. NOTE: A defendant can not even apply for PTI on a 2nd degree charge unless the prosecutor consents to the application.

The probation department will consider the PTI application and the PTI mitigation package we submitted and make a recommendation to the prosecutor’s office whether or not they think the defendant is a good candidate for PTI. However, it is ultimately up to the prosecutor’s office who has the final say about whether or not a defendant will be allowed into the PTI program. If the PTI application is denied, a defendant can file a PTI appeal and argue to the Judge that the State abused their discretion when denying their PTI application.