Police chiefs in Massachusetts hold ‘power’ when it comes to gun licenses
Gun laws in the Bay State — from securing a license to carry to an FID card — begin and end with the local chief.
“The statute does have a lot of power,” says Brian Kyes, the chief of the Chelsea Police Department, who added it’s “not crazy power” and should be a model for the nation.
Kyes, nominated to be the next U.S. Marshal for the District of Massachusetts, said the key is the “discretionary component” — where chiefs can check the logs, reports, court records and more looking for clues to hopefully prevent suicides or shootings.
The state’s law, especially a license to carry, comes with a vetting process that chiefs reached by the Herald this week swear by. Plus, anyone rejected can appeal to their district court.
“If someone is eligible,” Kyes added, “it doesn’t need to be a long song and dance.”
Yarmouth Police Chief Frank Frederickson, whose Sgt. Sean Gannon was slain in 2018 by a career criminal, called the law “a balanced approach” desperately needed as the nation mourns the latest loss of life to mass murder at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.
“Massachusetts standards should be nationwide,” he said. “It’s vetting out people who may not be responsible enough to carry a firearm — and there’s due process if denied!”
Retired Arlington Chief Fred Ryan stressed chiefs have access to records you can’t see at a gun shop.
“That’s critically important,” he said. “It’s one of the greatest investigative tools.”
Still, the local law is being called out for sometimes being too uneven depending on what city or town you live in.
“Our organization teaches a course about Massachusetts gun law for citizens and we don’t even cover the criminal law aspect, just what the good guys need to know, and it’s a three and a half-hour class,” said Jim Wallace, executive director of the Gun Owners Action League.
The problem, according to Wallace, is “chiefs of police being able to say ‘no’ to a permit application even if you pass the background check and meet all their other requirements.”
A chief may, according to state law, restrict a person’s license to carry to only target shooting and hunting, preventing them from carrying concealed firearms outside their homes or issue a separate license called a Firearms Identification Card.
That’s just one problem, Wallace said. Every town can come up with its own rules for what an applicant must do to get a license.
“Every city and every town is different, but Lowell is a perfect example, with their essay requirements. Lowell is really tough for licensing, and we’ve been going after them for years about it,” he said.
The City of Lowell, according to the licensing page, requires residents seeking a permit to submit “a written supplement providing specific reasons that the applicant believes support granting the unrestricted access. The written supplement should identify the applicant’s proper purpose in seeking an unrestricted LTC.”
“It’s a farce,” Wallace said.
Worcester requires two letters of reference — from nonrelatives who aren’t city cops — and that a person disclose their criminal history, regardless of conviction.
“(This) includes all adult and juvenile appearances. It does not matter when you appeared or if the charges were dismissed, continued without a finding or any other disposition,” their licensing website says.
The Cambridge Police do not generally issue unrestricted permits, a spokesperson told the Herald, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they restrict carrying arbitrarily.
“Cambridge issues restrictions on gun licenses case by case. Standard procedure is to have interested applicants visit the police station with completed paperwork. Our sergeant meets with them and ascertains what type of license would suit their needs and then review restrictions,” the spokesperson said.
The Boston Police Department’s license to carry firearms guidelines require an applicant to be at least 21 years old, reside or have a place of business in the city, pay a $100 licensing fee, provide a firearm safety or hunting safety course certificate issued by the commonwealth and provide several identity documents. An applicant must make an appointment with the department and qualify at the department’s Moon Island firing range within two weeks of the application.
The state Department of Criminal Justice Information Services lists five types of restrictions or lack thereof on firearms, excluding rifles or shotguns. Those include an unrestricted license, a restriction to recreational target shooting and hunting or protection of the home, a similar “sporting” license that also includes carrying during recreational activities like hiking and camping, an employment-related license that restricts carrying to activities related to a business activity like those of armored cars or security guards and, finally an “other,” in which “The licensing authority creates a restriction it deems proper.”
Those with felony convictions, misdemeanor convictions for domestic violence or punishable by imprisonment for more than two years, violations of weapons laws, violations of controlled substances laws, mental illness commitments, subjects of a restraining order, subjects of an arrest warrant and commitments for drug addiction or habitual drunkenness are disqualified for an LTC by statute.
from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/pOlVRWL
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