Are You A Nuisance?

In the last week Trenton Police TAC Unit #2 arrested 18 people. There was one charge that was common among 15 of the arrests, and in 8 of them it was the only charge, and that was maintaining a nuisance. I was not sure what the legal definition of that charge because I know a lot of people who are a nuisance but who don't get arrested for it. Here is the legal definition referenced from N.J.S. 2C:33-12:


2C:33-12. Maintaining a nuisance


A person is guilty of maintaining a nuisance when:


a. By conduct either unlawful in itself or unreasonable under all the circumstances, he knowingly or recklessly creates or maintains a condition which endangers the safety or health of a considerable number of persons;


b. He knowingly conducts or maintains any premises, place or resort where persons gather for purposes of engaging in unlawful conduct; or


c. He knowingly conducts or maintains any premises, place or resort as a house of prostitution or as a place where obscene material, as defined in N.J.S. 2C:34-2 and N.J.S. 2C:34-3, is sold, photographed, manufactured, exhibited or otherwise prepared or shown, in violation of N.J.S. 2C:34-2, N.J.S. 2C:34-3, and N.J.S.


I am guessing that all these people were charged with doing part a. of this law which is very vague. It sounds oddly familiar to a loitering law where if a person is hanging out on a street corner they are considered a danger to the public. This also seems redundant because are there no laws in place against reckless endangerment and the such? These are the kinds of laws of which I am wary.

Nothing encourages abuse more than nondescript laws.

In NJ U.S. Citizens Are Twice As Likely To Land In Prison As Legal And Illegal Immigrants

A study has come out showing that in NJ U.S. citizens are twice as likely to land in prison as legal and illegal immigrants. The liberals have been using this as a counter to the conservative argument that illegal immigration increases crime. In this case both sides are wrong. First of all if you are an illegal immigrant then you have already broken the law and are a criminal which cancels out the liberal argument. Secondly the conservatives have been focusing on a faulty argument when the real issue is that illegal immigrants are draining services that are paid with taxes collected from legal immigrants and US citizens.

BlueJersey, a liberal blog, stated this on their site: "Contrary to what the Donald Cresitellos of the state would have you believe, citizens are twice as likely as immigrants to wind up in behind bars in New Jersey." Mayor Donald Cresitello is the mayor of Morristown who created much controversy when he applied for a federal program under which his town's police force would receive training and the authority to enforce immigration law. Whether Cresitello made this argument or not is irrelevant. Every constitutional law needs to be enforced or else it diminishes the ability of the police force to enforce all laws. Once we start to nick pick which laws should be enforced and which ones don't we fore go the reason why we have laws in the first place.

Immigration laws need to be enforced. If you have a problem with the law then deal with the law itself, don't attack the ability of the police to enforce it.

Click here for the news article.

Mayor Booker Believes Gambling Is A Quality Of Life Issue

Newark is cracking down on illegal gambling in the form of electronic Keno style games. These used to be legal under an older ordinance but has now become illegal under the Cory Booker administration. The reason for this change in policy? Illegal gambling machines have long been associated with organized crime, at least this is what is reported by The Star Ledger. But this makes absolutely no sense. If you legalize gambling doesn't that bypass the problem of organized crime using this logic?

As we have learned from prohibition and the drug war, when you make something illegal it automatically creates a black market for that service or product which is impossible to quash as long as there is a need for it. I know the type of machines you are talking about and they are not gambling machines. The machine doesn't give you any money back. Yes, it is a game of chance but you can say that of some arcade games. Are we going to start banning arcade games because you are putting money in it to see if you can win, the same motivation behind playing one of these Keno style games.

The logic behind this kind of policy is twisted and self fulfilling. If you want there to be an association between gambling and organized crime then make it illegal and it will only be the organized crime members who can offer the service to others. If you legalize it then it will be the Trumps of the world that will offer it to the public.

Click here to read the news article.