MA Ranked 3rd Worst State for Gun Owners
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
"It's a really complicated situation here in Massachusetts. The laws are literally so convoluted," said Jim Wallace, executive director of the Gun Owners' Action League (GOAL), a grassroots organization based in Northborough and the official state association of the National Rifle Association (NRA) in the Bay State.
"I've had several legislators in the State House ask me to put together a PowerPoint presentation (outlining the state's gun laws). I said that would take about 8 hours."
Bay State not friendly to gun owners
Guns & Ammo based their assessment on five criteria: concealed carry regulations; restrictions on so-called "modern sporting rifles" or MSRs, a class of semi-automatic rifles; restrictions on weapons classified under the National Firearms Act (NFA), such as machine guns, suppressors and short-barreled rifles; state Stand Your Ground laws or Castle Doctrines regarding the use of a firearm in self-defense both inside and outside of the home; and miscellaneous factors, such as the state's culture and its relation to firearms or additional restrictions on weapons, ammunition or magazines. Each criteria was scored on a scale of 1 to 10, for a maximum total score of 50 points.
The Commonwealth was also home to the third-lowest percentage of gun owners, according to Guns & Ammo, at just 12.6 percent of the population.
The only states to score lower than Mass. were New Jersey (49th), New York (50th) and Washington, D.C. (51st).
In New England, Connecticut ranked 45th, Rhode Island ranked 42nd, Maine finished 29th, New Hampshire was 10th, and Vermont came in as the 2nd best state for gun owners in 2013, with a score of 49 points, missing a perfect 50 due to the lack of specific laws regarding the Castle Doctrine in the Green Mountain State.
"It's certainly not something to be proud of," said Brent Carlton, president of the grassroots organization Commonwealth Second Amendment (Comm2A), in regard to Mass. place near the bottom.
Range of licenses with their own issues
Wallace explained the Commonwealth's four main levels of licenses ranging from a restricted Firearms Identification (FID) card, which is needed to carry pepper spray and the standard FID, which is good for rifles and shotguns that are not high capacity.
For those two licenses, said Wallace, if applicants meet the statutory requirements, they automatically get the license.
However, the state's License to Carry (LTC) Class A, for almost any firearm except machine guns, and Class B, for long guns, both high-capacity and not, and non-high capacity handguns, licenses are discretionary licenses.
"The B and the A can be restricted or denied for virtually any reason," Wallace said, noting that applicants can go to court to appeal the denial of their application, but the burden is on the citizen to prove they are suitable for the license.
"Most other states, if you're eligible for the license you get the license. Massachusetts is one of the strange state's where it's up to the citizen to basically yourself not guilty."
State vs. local licensing authorities
Wallace also noted issues with license renewal for those that do receive them. While state law says renewing a firearm license can take no longer than 40 days, Wallace said that GOAL members are currently waiting anywhere from four to eight months to have their licenses renewed.
The discrepancy arises in from the fact that the state mandated licenses are processed and issued by local police chiefs in the state's 351 cities and towns. And each one of those 351 police chiefs has their own standards for issuing licenses, said Carlton.
Baseline requirements include an application, a $100 fee and passage of a safety course, but Carlton said some local police chiefs require that applicants go further, requiring up to five reference letters and even a note from a psychiatrist in some cases.
"It results in a great deal of disparity from town to town," he said. "Your rights as a gun owner could vary dramatically."
"The state blames the town, the town blames the state, and if you're trying to be a lawfully licensed gun owner, there's no one to complain to," Wallace said. "It's a system designed to be broken."
Comm2A has taken legal action in some cases, and earlier this year the group and six Mass. residents filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of restrictions placed on the LTC issued by Worcester Chief of Police Gary Gemme and his counterparts in the towns of Weymouth, Danvers and Peabody. In the suit, the plaintiffs alleged that they were were denied their Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms because the police chiefs imposed unreasonable and unlawful licensing restrictions on them.
Related Articles
- Worcester Coalition Rallies Support for Stricter Gun Laws
- “Goods for Guns” Born out of Worcester Doctor’s Tragedy
- Central Mass Tea Party Up In Arms Over Gun Control
- Investigation: Gun Permits Skyrocketing in Central MA
- Leonardo Angiulo: Two Supreme Court Decisions Shaping the Gun Control Debate
- MA Firearm Instructors: Protect Schools With Guns, Legalize Assault Rifles
- McGovern Pushes for Action at Worcester Gun Violence Forum
Follow us on Pinterest Google + Facebook Twitter See It Read It