John H. Zamrok,
State Range Master

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Where can I find.................?

Where can I get a copy of DCJ’s firearms course schedule?

Where can I get a copy of the Attorney General’s Firearms Qualification and Requalification Standards for New Jersey Law Enforcement?

The AG’s guidelines for firearms requalification can be obtained by going on our web site, www.njdcj.org clicking on “guidelines” as the new page opens you will see “guideline” again in the center of the page, click on “guidelines” again. When the third page opens look to the list on the left side of the page and scoll down to “Firearms”. When the Firearms page opens, you may download the policy. Or by clicking on “AG Requalification Guidelines” link in the “Firearms Training” section of this site.

Where can I obtain a copy of the Basic Firearm Course Manual?

Let’s be careful here now!!! The “Basic Firearms Course Manual” is a Police Training
Commission (PTC) document intended to be used for police academy firearms training only. If you are looking information for in-service firearms qualification you want the Attorney General’s Firearms Qualification and Requalification Standards for New Jersey Law Enforcement (see the question directly above).
The PTC’s “Basic Firearm Course Manual” may be obtained by going to the PTC’s web site, www.njptc.org and clicking on the “Basic Firearms Course” tab.

PTC - Police Training Commission Questions

What involvement does the PTC have with law enforcement in-service training?

The Police Training Commission governs training activity only at police academies. The PTC has noting to do with in-service training.

I have a question about my PTC instructor certification, who do I call?

You may contact either Barbara Zelenak 609 292 6384 email zelenakb@njdcj.org or Cathy Perilli 609 984 0933 email perillic@njdcj.org.

Does anyone from the PTC have to inspect a new or upgraded firearms range before we use it for in-service firearms training?

No. The PTC only inspects ranges that are used to train police academy trainees, not ranges used for in-service training.

Handgun Qualification Courses

What’s the difference between the HQC1 and the HQC2?

The HQC1 is a 60 round course of fire and the HQC2 is a 50 round equivalent course of fire for handgun qualification. It is the agency’s choice which one they want to use.

Must we fire the HQC starting at the 25 yard line or may we start at the 1 yard line?

The choice is yours, you may start at either location.

Does the Attorney General’s Guidelines say anything about what we should do with an officer who fails to qualify on the HQC?

No. What happens to someone who fails the qualification course is up to the agency. When remediation is conducted, how long remediation takes place, when should an officer be disarmed is all decided by the agency.

We highly recommend, whatever the agency decides, should be a WRITTEN department policy. This way everyone involved knows what is expected and there will be no “tough of war” for anyone’s firearm at the range.

Handgun Night Qualification Course

When does the new Handgun Night Qualification Course become effective?

The new night course becomes mandatory January 1, 2004, however, any agency may begin using it at any time.

Can we use darkening goggles to simulate low light conditions?

Yes. However, the shooters should have a handheld light even though they can not see the light beam. It is the shooting technique having the handheld light in hand that is important.

Can we use a wooden dowel or pipe to simulate a handheld light?

No. Handheld lights come in many different shape, sizes, and switch locations. The shooter must become accustom to their particular light.

Can we provide ambient light during low light qualifications?

Yes, headlights, rotating emergency lights or other lights, which would help to provide realism to the range may be used.

Assault Weapons Qualification

I noticed there is no Assault Rifle qualification course for night or low light conditions. Could you explain?

Historically, the rifle was used for perimeter distances, which made the identification for the justification to shoot difficult. So basically a rifleman would only firing under lighting
conditions which would provide the ability to identify a hostile thread. However, recently, the rifle’s deployment has changed and they are being used as patrol supplements and entry tools. In these two deployment scenarios that distance has changed to contact distances and room distances. Here identification is easier to make under low light conditions.

Therefore, if the rifle is going to be deployed as a patrol supplement or used on entries, officers must qualify semi-annually on either the Subgun Night Course or the Police Carbine Night Course, your choice.

If I put a scope on my AR-15 do I have to fire the Scoped Rifle Qualification Course?

The answer lies in the intended deployment. If you just put some type of sighting optic on the rifle but do not intend to use it as a sniper rifle, then no.

However, if you put the scope on the rifle and intend to use it for long range counter-sniper situations, then yes.

What is the difference in “quarterly training” and “semi-annual qualification” with regards to the Assault Weapon section of the AG’s policy?

The AG’s policy requires agencies deploying assault firearms to train quarterly. Two of these training dates may be used for qualification. The guns have to come out of the closet four times a year. Two of these times may be used for qualification.
The other two training days each person must fire a minimum of ten rounds.

Example: February, training day, minimum of ten rounds for each participant
May, day and night qualification (if applicable)
August, training day, minimum of ten rounds for each participant
November, day and night qualification (if applicable).

This type of schedule satisfies the language of the AG’s “quarterly training”