NJLP Takes Action Against Officials Who Act Above the Law

Libertarians demand that cops live under the same laws as the rest of us

Tennent, NJ, May 18, 2011: Prompted by recent Star Ledger articles regarding police officers' habitual failure to enforce drunk driving laws against State Trooper Sheila McKaig, the New Jersey Libertarian Party (NJLP) has formally petitioned the New Jersey Attorney General to take corrective action.

On May 16, 2011, the NJLP State Board unanimously voted to send a "petition for rulemaking" to Attorney General Paula Dow asking for "some rules that genuinely and substantially address the problem of police showing favoritism to fellow officers. A copy of the petition, which was submitted to Dow on May 17, 2011, is on-line at http://njlp.org/uploads/petitionToAG.pdf.

"The idea of a certain class of people--in this case police officers--being above the law is disgusting," said NJLP Chairman R. Jay Edgar. "The struggle to ensure equality before the law for all citizens is a story as old as America itself."

The NJLP submitted its petition in accordance with the New Jersey Administrative Procedures Act (APA) which gives any person the power to petition an agency to adopt a new rule, or amend or repeal any existing rule (See N.J.S.A. 52:14B-4(f)). The APA requires the Attorney General, within 60 days, to either grant the petition or "deny the petition and provide a written statement of [her] reasons to the petitioner" (quoted from N.J.A.C. § 13:1D-1.3). Whatever action the Attorney General takes must be published in the New Jersey Register.

For more information or comment, call R. Jay Edgar at (848)525-0578.