Gov. Phil Murphy announced Friday he's reversing a policy his predecessor, Chris Christie, put in place that was meant to make it easier for New Jerseyans to obtain a permit to carry a handgun.

"New Jersey cannot and must not become part of the race to the bottom that we're seeing across the country," Murphy, a Democrat, said during a news conference at the YMCA in Trenton. "There are already too many guns in our streets, and simply adding more to the equation will not make us or our communities any safer."

Christie, a Republican, moved in 2016 to loosen the rules determining who can carry a concealed handgun in New Jersey, a state with some of the toughest gun laws in the country.

Originally, the regulations said residents must show a "justifiable need" to carry a firearm because they had been the target of "specific threats" or attacks.

But Christie's administration lowered the bar to allow a chief of police or the State Police superintendent to consider permits for residents who can show evidence of "serious threats" against them.

Christie -- who was then running for the Republican nomination for president -- made the move based on recommendations from a panel he commissioned to examine the rules after Berlin resident Carol Bowne was stabbed to death by an ex-boyfriend during the period she was waiting for her firearm application to be approved.

The Democratic-controlled state Legislature sued in state appellate court to stop Christie's rule change.

But on Friday, Murphy's state attorney general, Gurbir Grewal, said the state has filed a motion to halt the case and will simply revert to the original regulations.

Murphy's office said the rollback could take between three and six months to go into effect.

State Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-Gloucester, welcomed the decision.

"This is New Jersey," Sweeney said, standing next to Murphy and Grewal at the news conference. "It's not some state that thinks everyone should be carrying a gun and we're gonna be safer if we do that."

But Scott Bach, executive director of the Association of New Jersey Rifle & Pistol Clubs, denounced Murphy's move -- and evoked Bowne's name.

"The U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly held that police owe no duty to protect individual citizens, which means you're on your own in an emergency," Bach said. "It is an outrage that the same government that abandons its duty to keep us safe is also working to prevent us from protecting ourselves."

"Gov. Murphy will have the blood of more innocents like Carol Bowne on his hands," Bach added.

Murphy, who was sworn in Jan. 16 to succeed Christie, has repeatedly vowed to make the Garden State's gun laws stricter.

Joining Murphy on Friday was Glenda Torres, the mother of a man who was shot to death in Trenton in 2012.

Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @johnsb01. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.