josh moore carneys point gun photo

Josh Moore of Carney's Point in a Facebook photo. Child welfare case workers and police officers visited his home on Friday and asked to see his guns.

CARNEYS POINT TWP. — Gov. Chris Christie has asked the state Attorney General to look into how child protective services and local law enforcement officials handled the investigation of a man who posted a picture of his son holding a gun on Facebook.

In a letter sent to Attorney General Jeffrey S. Chiesa, Christie said that he wanted to make sure all applicable laws were followed when Carneys Point Police and Division of Child Protection and Permanency agents went to township resident Shawn Moore's home to investigate the picture.

"The public reports of this matter raise troubling questions concerning the facts and circumstances surrounding the investigation, the manner in which the investigation was conducted, and the procedures followed by law enforcement and the Division of Child Protection and Permanency," Christie said in the letter obtained by the Times.

A spokesman from the Attorney General's Office today confirmed that they received the letter from the governor and that it was under review.

An investigation into the matter has not yet begun, and the spokesman could not offer further comment.

The case drew nationwide attention at a time when lawmakers are debating new, stricter gun controls. Gun advocates say the laws would be an attack on their rights under the Second Amendment.

Moore had posted a picture of his 10-year-old son, Joshua, holding a .22-caliber rifle he had just received as a gift for upcoming 11th birthday.

Carneys Point Police and DCPP both received anonymous tips that reported that a child might have access to firearms and ammunition, according to Carneys Point Police Chief Robert DiGregorio.

The tips came after someone apparently had seen the Facebook posting.

Police and state agents went to Moore’s home on March 15.

Moore was at a friend’s house when he got a call from his wife who said that the police were at their home and were asking to see his guns.

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Shawn Moore told the Associated Press that the caseworkers wanted him to open his safe so the could make sure his guns were registered.

“I said ‘no.’ In New Jersey, your guns don’t have to be registered with the state; it's voluntary,” he said. “I knew once I opened that safe, there was no going back.”

He was on the phone with his lawyer, Evan Nappen, at the time who advised him not to open the safe unless the investigating authorities had a search warrant.

When they told him they didn't have one, Moore told them to leave his house.

While the DCPP case on Moore is technically still open, Nappen said that he does not expect any further action.

DiGregorio last week said the case is now considered closed as far as the Carneys Point Police Department is concerned.

Nappen said today that he and his client would welcome an investigation, and he hopes this helps ensure that a similar incident doesn’t happen to anyone else.

Contact staff writer Alex Young at 856-451-1000 ext. 550 or alexyoung@southjerseymedia.com