美国国家公共电台 NPR--Will New Jersey be affected when the Supreme Court rules on New York's gun laws?

Will New Jersey¹ be affected² when the Supreme³ Court rules on New York's gun laws?

Transcript⁴

The Supreme Court is set to rule on New York's concealed⁵ carry law. NPR's Steve Inskeep talks to New Jersey Acting⁶ Attorney General Matthew Platkin about how the ruling may affect his state.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

The Senate appears close to passing a compromise package of very narrow gun safety measures. But as that is happening, the Supreme Court is poised⁷ to hand down a ruling that could stop six states from limiting who gets to carry weapons outside their home. The decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen will be the first major ruling on the Second Amendment⁸ by the high court in over a decade. New Jersey has some of the strictest firearm restrictions⁹ in the country, and it's one of the states that would be affected by this ruling. With us now is Matthew Platkin, acting attorney general for New Jersey. Welcome to the program, and good morning.

MATTHEW PLATKIN: Good morning, Leila.

FADEL: So let's start with what's at stake for your state in the court's ruling here.

PLATKIN: Look; I think, Leila, none of us have a crystal ball.

FADEL: Right.

PLATKIN: But the writing's on the wall. You know, the current majority of the Supreme Court is likely to issue a decision that significantly reduces our ability to protect our state from the epidemic¹⁰ of gun violence. And this has been a movement in this country to hamstring state firearm safety policies. And there's no question that any decision that restricts our concealed-carry regulations, which I believe are entirely¹¹ consistent with the Second Amendment - in New York's case, it's been around for over a hundred years - this decision would undermine public safety.

FADEL: Now, if the Supreme Court strikes down these may-carry restrictions, what exactly changes in New Jersey?

PLATKIN: Well, I think, first and foremost, you would still need a permit to carry a firearm, and I hope everybody realizes that. But the justifiable¹² need requirement, which is the strictest part of our concealed-carry permit law, that could potentially be struck down by this decision. And so what that would mean is in New Jersey, more people would be able to have a concealed-carry permit. You know, what works in Wyoming doesn't necessarily work in the densest¹³ state in the country and particularly in our urban centers, places where people take mass transit¹⁴, places where people live and work in very close proximity¹⁵, and confrontations¹⁶ with concealed carry - when concealed carry is much more available, those confrontations become more violent and potentially more deadly.

FADEL: So you're worried about public safety. What does your office plan to do if the law is struck down?

PLATKIN: Well, obviously, we have to review what the court says, but we have teams preparing for any policy changes or litigation once we get the Bruen decision, and we'll advise officials accordingly. And I have to thank Governor Murphy, who has been a leader on gun safety efforts since his time in office. And he has a package of legislative¹⁷ reforms that are currently being considered by the Legislature. But I just have to be clear, again - this is a decision and this case is considering a law that's been around for over a century. The court has said in its other gun cases that it cares about the history of these laws. And this is a law - and our law is similar - that has been around for a very long time without constitutional challenge. And it would tremendously impact our ability to keep New Jerseyans safe if we lose the justifiable needs requirement.

FADEL: In the few seconds we have left, what do you say to gun activists¹⁸ who say, why shouldn't trained, law-abiding New Jersey gun owners have the right to conceal-carry?

PLATKIN: I would say that sensible regulations on firearms have been entirely consistent with the Second Amendment for a very long time, and they are part of a constellation¹⁹ of laws that we have that keep people safe. We have one of the lowest rates of gun violence in the country, and that's a result of our strong gun safety laws. And the court should defer²⁰ to law enforcement experts.

FADEL: Matthew Platkin, acting attorney general for the state of New Jersey. Thank you so much.

PLATKIN: Thank you.

1 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

2 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

3 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

4 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

5 concealed   

a.隐藏的，隐蔽的

参考例句：

• The paintings were concealed beneath a thick layer of plaster. 那些画被隐藏在厚厚的灰泥层下面。
• I think he had a gun concealed about his person. 我认为他当时身上藏有一支枪。

6 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

7 poised   

a.摆好姿势不动的

参考例句：

• The hawk poised in mid-air ready to swoop. 老鹰在半空中盘旋，准备俯冲。
• Tina was tense, her hand poised over the telephone. 蒂娜心情紧张，手悬在电话机上。

8 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

9 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

10 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

11 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

12 justifiable   

adj.有理由的，无可非议的

参考例句：

• What he has done is hardly justifiable.他的所作所为说不过去。
• Justifiable defense is the act being exempted from crimes.正当防卫不属于犯罪行为。

13 densest   

密集的( dense的最高级 )； 密度大的； 愚笨的； （信息量大得）难理解的

参考例句：

• Past Botoi some of the densest jungle forests on Anopopei grew virtually into the water. 过了坊远湾，岛上的莽莽丛林便几乎直长到水中。
• Earth is the densest of all of these remaining planets. 地球是所剩下行星中最致密的星球。

14 transit   

n.经过，运输；vt.穿越，旋转；vi.越过

参考例句：

• His luggage was lost in transit.他的行李在运送中丢失。
• The canal can transit a total of 50 ships daily.这条运河每天能通过50条船。

15 proximity   

n.接近，邻近

参考例句：

• Marriages in proximity of blood are forbidden by the law.法律规定禁止近亲结婚。
• Their house is in close proximity to ours.他们的房子很接近我们的。

16 confrontations   

n.对抗，对抗的事物( confrontation的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• At times, this potential has escalated into actual confrontations. 有时，这一矛盾升级为实际的对抗。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法
• These confrontations and uncertainties were bing played out for the first time on a global scale. 所有这一切对抗和不稳定，第一次在全球范围内得到充分的表演。 来自辞典例句

17 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。

18 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 constellation   

n.星座n.灿烂的一群

参考例句：

• A constellation is a pattern of stars as seen from the earth. 一个星座只是从地球上看到的某些恒星的一种样子。
• The Big Dipper is not by itself a constellation. 北斗七星本身不是一个星座。

20 defer   

vt.推迟，拖延；vi.(to)遵从，听从，服从

参考例句：

• We wish to defer our decision until next week.我们希望推迟到下星期再作出决定。
• We will defer to whatever the committee decides.我们遵从委员会作出的任何决定。