By Philip Sean Curran, Staff Writer
A “steady flow” of Princeton residents have applied in the past six weeks to the Police Department seeking the necessary documents to buy and own firearms.
Police Capt. Nicholas K. Sutter said that since Nov. 29, 20 people have applied for a firearms identification card and or the handgun purchase permit, both of which require mandatory criminal and personal history checks. The application process can take two months or longer.
Borough Councilwoman Heather H. Howard, a gun control advocate, said the figure shows the town is not immune to national trends, as people seek to buy guns ahead of expected gun control proposals by the Obama administration.
She called it a reminder of “why we need a broader debate” on “common-sense gun laws.”
”It seems there is a consensus that common-sense gun control provisions we should consider include a ban on assault weapons and large ammunition clips and closing the gun show loophole, which would require background checks for all purchases at gun shows,” she said.
Firearms identification cards, which cost $5, are necessary for anyone seeking to buy a long gun, such as a rifle or shotgun, Capt. Sutter said. It is also necessary if anyone is seeking to get the other kind of permission, a $2 handgun purchase permit, that allows the permit holder to buy and own a handgun.
In both instances, applicants who must be residents of Princeton must provide fingerprint samples. Capt. Sutter said an applicant does not have to show proficiency with using a handgun to get the ID card or permit.
Princeton Mayor Liz Lempert has also jumped into the national debate about gun control. She announced this week that she recently had signed onto Mayors Against Illegal Guns, an alliance of more than 800 mayors from across the country calling for stricter regulations.
In New Jersey, the list of mayors participating includes Newark Mayor Cory Booker, head of the state’s most populous city, and West Windsor Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh.
She said Wednesday that the group is “cracking down on illegal guns.”
Mayor Lempert’s embrace of the organization comes even as she this week defended the proposed shrinking of the Princeton Police Department. The police issue, raised as a way to save money from consolidating the two towns, came up at Monday’s Princeton Council meeting.
For her part, Ms. Howard said she did not think there was a “mixed message” in supporting gun control measures on one hand and what she termed “right-sizing” the department on the other.
”Consolidation and right-sizing the police force is actually an opportunity to strengthen and enhance public safety services by finding management efficiencies,” Ms. Howard said in an email.
Mayor Lempert, who favors a smaller department that is brought down to 51 officers over time, said the reduction would not impact officers on the streets but rather those at the administrative level.
Police started 2013 with 54 officers but are down to 50, as two are on maternity leave and two are injured, said Chief David J. Dudeck on Monday.