Gov. Chris Christie has pardoned a Philadelphia woman facing gun charges and jail time after a routine traffic stop in New Jersey in 2013.

Shaneen Allen was arrested in October 2013 in Hamilton Township after telling a state trooper she had a handgun and a concealed carry permit.

"To me, it wasn't something to hide or hold back, that's why I was so open to tell police I had it on me," says Allen. "I was proud to have it because I got it the right way."

However, New Jersey does not recognize the Pennsylvania permit, so she was arrested and charged.

She spent 48 days in jail before eventually being freed on pretrial intervention.

The charge has kept her from getting a job. Now with the pardon from Gov. Christie, she hopes that will change.

"Now when I go for employment, it'll be a clean record, like it was before," Allen says.

Gov. Christie's decision won quick praise from the National Rifle Association, which said he did the right thing.

The governor said at a recent town hall meeting that he would consider changing the state's gun laws, but the Democratic Legislature has no appetite for that. He says he'll instead do what he is legally allowed to do, such as pardons when he thinks they're warranted.

Allen originally bought that gun for protection after being mugged twice in one month in Philadelphia. She has since been recognized by the NRA and tea party for fighting these charges.