Few props carry the impact of a semiautomatic assault rifle. So on June 9, 1999, when Mayor Sharpe James announced that Newark would sue gun manufacturers to recover the costs of gun violence, the mayor picked up an AK-47 rifle.
"It's immoral and unconscionable that you can purchase a weapon of destruction over the counter like popcorn and ice cream," James said as he gripped the rifle...
In fact, Newark has provided more than 1,500 firearms to gun dealers who in turn sell the used weapons over the counter. Like most New Jersey cities, Newark trades in used police weapons to dealers who provide a large discount when the city buys new police guns. It's as legal as selling popcorn.
Lies from the mayor and lies from the paper, implying there are no more controls or restrictions in place than are required for a popcorn purchase. James' little media stunt was conducted 9 years after New Jersey's "assault weapons" ban was enacted (gee, must've worked real well), and those don't go back into the general population--at least through the official set of books (check out the entry for "Aug. 23"). But what do we expect?
Just do a Google search on "sharpe james" and "corruption".
This third world thug is why the Framers included a government correction clause in the Bill of Rights.