N.J. Senator Co-Sponsors Gun Carry Bill As Penn. Woman Faces Mandatory Jail Time
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - Some New Jersey lawmakers have taken up the cause of a Philadelphia woman arrested for packing a gun during a trip to Atlantic City.
Shaneen Allen was pulled over last year during a traffic stop and said she had a Pennsylvania concealed carry permit. But the permit isn't valid in New Jersey, which has some of the strictest gun laws in the nation.
"In this case, we're punishing an innocent woman who made an honest mistake, was totally legal in her home state of Pennsylvania," Senator Jeff Van Drew told WCBS 880's Levon Putney.
N.J. Senator Co-Sponsors Gun Carry Bill As Penn. Woman Faces Mandatory Jail Time
Allen faces up to give years in prison even after showing the cop she was licensed to carry in Pennsylvania after being robbed the year before.
Van Drew is co-sponsoring a bill so cases like Allen's can avoid the state's mandatory jail time if convicted.
"I mean, honest mistakes happen, she's a legal, law-abiding person and a mistake occured and quite frankly the judge should have jurisdiction and the judge should have discretion," Van Drew said.
Christie says he's been following the case closely but doesn't like to intervene in cases until they've had the opportunity to work their way through the judicial process.
"I don't like to intervene in the judicial process until the judicial process has an opportunity to work its way through," he said. "I think then and only then is it the appropriate time for a governor to consider action."
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