Maine Permitless Carry and Exceptions!!!!!!

[Gary Slider]

With Permitless Carry coming to Maine on or about October 14, 2015. The exact date depends on the date the Legislature adjourns. (Adjournment is scheduled for July 16.) There will be some circumstances in which an optional handgun permit will still be required to legally carry and certain things they must do that a permit holder doesn’t. Below are the places that will still require a permit/license that Maine Issues or Honors to legally carry in those places. Those carrying under Permitless Carry can’t carry in those places as they require a Maine Permit or a Permit from a state Maine Honors. www.handgunlaw.us will update the Maine page when the new law takes effect.

• Acadia National Park (Permit required; 12 M.R.S. §756)
• State Parks (Permit required; open carry not permitted; 12 M.R.S. § 1803(7))
• Regular archery hunting-deer only (Permit required; 12 MRS § 11403)
• Employees’ vehicles on work premises (Permit required; vehicle must be locked and firearm must not be visible; 26 M.R.S. §600)
• Those carrying under permitless carry must notify officers immediately in any official contact.

Maine is already stating the above on their website at this link:
http://www.maine.gov/dps/msp/licenses/documents/Weapons/LD 652 Summary.pdf

Maine’s WILL NOT honor all other states permit/licenses like the other states that have gone permitless carry but they will have a new Reciprocity law that goes into effect the same date as Permitless Carry law. Today Maine only honors resident permits from 8 other states. Delaware, South Dakota, Louisiana, North Dakota - Class 1 Permits, Wyoming, Arkansas, Pennsylvania and Michigan. With their new reciprocity law it should go to 25+ states that they will honor. That will take some time for those other states to sign on. Here is their new Reciprocity law and as you can see it will only be resident licenses from the states they honor. People can carry without a permit but will be unable to carry in or in the situations listed above that those with a Maine or Permit they honor can.
25 MRSA §2001-A, sub-§2,

F. A handgun carried by a person to whom a valid permit to carry a concealed handgun has been issued by that person's state of residence if that person's state of residence honors a permit to carry a concealed handgun issued under this chapter;

Below is the new law for Permitless Carry as signed by the Governor.

12 MRSA §11212, Motor vehicles and motorboats

B. A person may not, while in or on a motor vehicle or in or on a trailer or other type of vehicle being hauled by a motor vehicle, have a cocked and armed crossbow or a firearm with a cartridge or shell in the chamber or in an attached magazine, clip or cylinder or a muzzle-loading firearm charged with powder, lead and a primed ignition device or mechanism, except that a person who is 21 years of age or older and is not otherwise prohibited from possessing a firearm or is 18 years of age or older and under 21 years of age and is on active duty in the Armed Forces of the United States or the National Guard or is an honorably discharged veteran of the Armed Forces of the United States or the National Guard and is not otherwise prohibited from carrying a firearm may have in or on a motor vehicle or trailer or other type of vehicle a loaded pistol or revolver

25 MRSA §2001-A,

2. Exceptions. The provisions of this section concerning the carrying of concealed weapons do not apply to:

A-1. A handgun carried by a person who is 21 years of age or older and is not otherwise prohibited from carrying a firearm or is 18 years of age or older and under 21 years of age and is on active duty in the Armed Forces of the United States or the National Guard or is an honorably discharged veteran of the Armed Forces of the United States or the National Guard and is not otherwise prohibited from carrying a firearm.

25 MRSA §2003-A. Duty to inform law enforcement

When an individual who is carrying a concealed handgun pursuant to the authority of this chapter and who does not have a valid permit to carry a concealed handgun that has been issued as provided in this chapter first comes into contact with any law enforcement officer of this State or its political subdivisions or a federal law enforcement officer during the course of any arrest, detainment or routine traffic stop, that individual shall immediately inform that law enforcement officer of the fact that the individual is carrying a concealed handgun.

25 MRSA §2004 Failure to inform law enforcement.

A person who fails to comply with section 2003-A commits a civil violation for which a fine of not more than $100 may be adjudged.

 

[BSA1]

Sounds like gun owners have some fine tuning to do to the law next legislative season. However you have won the big battle.

 

[Gary Slider]

I posted this on another board when someone ask the question of what Handgunlaw.us believed would be the 25+ states that Maine would honor. I thought I would post it here also. GS

AK, AL, AR, AZ, DE, IA, ID, IN, KS, KY, LA, MI, MO, MS, ND, NC, NE, OH, OK, PA, SD, TN, UT, WY already honor Maine. CO, FL and GA will honor anyone who honors them. So that will be 27 states that Maine will honor. MN reciprocity law has just changed and they have a good chance of honoring Maine. WV has been trying to get an agreement with Maine for a year now. Other states that may sign on with Maine but I can’t be positive about are VA, TX and WI. Some state require a signed agreement. Maine has signed agreements in the past so they should still sign agreements.

Handgunlaw.us believes the wording of Maine’s new Reciprocity law means that the date the law goes into effect Maine should automatically honor
AK, AL, AR, AZ, DE, IA, ID, IN, KS, KY, LA, MI, MO, MS, ND, NC, NE, OH, OK, PA, SD, TN, UT and WY as their law states they will honor anyone who honors them. We will just have to wait and see.

 

[Ryanxia]

What about NH? That's really the only one most of us care about. Doesn't make any sense for tens of thousands of people to be required to draw a loaded firearm at the border and manipulate it (to unload it before crossing the State line).

 

[Gary Slider]

That is between Maine and NH. They will have to agree to honor each other.

 

[Ryanxia]

Yes I know that, I was asking isn't NH on the list of new states it would honor? (presumably NH would follow suit)
It wasn't on your list.

 

[Gary Slider]

NH reciprocity is below. But SD honors NH and NH has never listed SD as a state they honor. I am not sure how NH does it. They could but NH over the years has never made any sense to me on how they decide who or who they won't honor.

Title XII 159:6-d Full Faith and Credit for Licenses From Other States; Reciprocity. –
Notwithstanding the provisions of RSA 159:6, no nonresident holding a current and valid license to carry a loaded pistol or revolver in the state in which he resides or who is a peace officer in the state in which he resides, shall be required to obtain a license to carry a loaded pistol or revolver within this state if: I. Such nonresident carries upon his person the license held from the state in which he resides; and II. The state in which such person is a resident provides a reciprocal privilege for residents of this
state. Source. 1993, 130:1, eff. Jan. 1, 1994.

 

[Ryanxia]

Thanks for that info.

 

[steve4102]

It should be noted that carrying without a permit within 1000 feet of a school is a Felony.

 

[flphotog]

I'm not very good at double talk, can someone help me with this:
"B. A person may not, while in or on a motor vehicle or in or on a trailer or other type of vehicle being hauled by a motor vehicle, have a cocked and armed crossbow or a firearm with a cartridge or shell in the chamber or in an attached magazine, clip or cylinder or a muzzle-loading firearm charged with powder, lead and a primed ignition device or mechanism, except that a person who is 21 years of age or older and is not otherwise prohibited from possessing a firearm or is 18 years of age or older and under 21 years of age and is on active duty in the Armed Forces of the United States or the National Guard or is an honorably discharged veteran of the Armed Forces of the United States or the National Guard and is not otherwise prohibited from carrying a firearm may have in or on a motor vehicle or trailer or other type of vehicle a loaded pistol or revolver'

This sounds like it says that I can't have a loaded gun in my car, but if I'm honorably discharged, I can have a loaded gun in the car. Does this imply that I need to keep my discharge papers in the car. That seems a bit ridiculous to me.

 

[Gary Slider]

They just amended a law that use to say you couldn't carry in a vehicle. That is the reason for the way it is worded. But it states this:

except that a person who is 21 years of age or older and is not otherwise prohibited from possessing a firearm or is 18 years of age or older and under 21 years of age and is on active duty in the Armed Forces of the United States or the National Guard or is an honorably discharged veteran of the Armed Forces of the United States or the National Guard and is not otherwise prohibited from carrying a firearm may have in or on a motor vehicle or trailer or other type of vehicle a loaded pistol or revolver'

They added the exception to the law and the part above is what you want to go by. If you meet the requirements of the exception you can carry without a permit.

 

[Uglyducky]

Wow. What a win