Need Massachusetts High Road Help

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Travis McGee

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I was listening to a talk radio show about Kerry's staged photo-op with the shotgun in Pennsylvania over the weekend. Someone called in to make the point that Massachusetts has among the most restrictive gun laws in the nation.

This caller said that when you drive into Massachusetts, there are big signs which say, "BRING A GUN INTO MASSACHUSETTS, GO TO JAIL FOR ONE YEAR!" or something similar.

Is this true? Can a High-Roader take a digital photo of one of those signs, and post it here? It could be photoshopped along a picture of "Shotgun Kerry," captioned: "THE TRUTH, AND KERRY'S LIE."

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They're not on Route 84 to/from CT, Route 290/395 to/from CT, Route 93 to/from NH, Route 95 to/from NH, Route 495 to/from NH, or Route 95 to/from Rhode Island. I've traveled each of these routes in the last two months (the first three over this past weekend), so I think that caller has heard a nice urban legend.
 
Dammit, sounds like an urban myth all right.

I had a great mental image of that (imaginary) sign over "Shotgun Kerry."
 
Nope.
There was, for a while, a little tag line underneath the Welcome to the Mass Pike sign that said something to the effect of an additional year would be added to anyone convicted of a crime using a gun.

By the way, Massachusetts does not have the worst gun laws in the country. My local Wally World is fully stocked with long guns and all kinds of ammo. There is a great gun store in the next town to me, Hunter's Trading Post, where you can buy a hand gun in under 15 minutes. (Yes, legally!) My local police department gun licensing officer was somewhat incredulous that a man would want a high capacity CCW but he issued it without much interrogation. The biggest problem is our idiot AG who has a list of hand guns that he himself has to approve of before they can be sold. Actually, the biggest problem we have here is our list of left wing liberal fools that hold public office...:fire:
 
Hey Sherm sounds like parts of your state are better then mine. If I remember readiing right outta 8 million around 10,000 have CCW mostly retired LEO. Also we have all sorts of nice regs, like having to apply for pistol permits needing an FID card then having to go through NICS and the like.
 
I vaguelly remember them from back in the late 70's, when the mandatory year in jail laws first went into play.

I lived in rural CT, near the MA border, and back then, gun racks where a fairly common thing. A great todo was made in the local papers, warning the locals not to forget to leave their guns (out of sight) at home when crossing the border for groceries. :neener:

As a result of this, gunracks started disappearing in fairly short order, while the town mechanic did brisk business in installing false floors in trunks.

:)
 
Actually there used to be a big sign that said that in the mid 80s on Rte 84 coming from CT into Mass. It was right on the Holland/Sturbridge line. It hasn't been there for years though.
 
one year in jail

I've lived here nearly 60 years.

A while back (20 years? - time flies when you're having fun) a law was passed that said you got a mandatory one year jail sentence for a firearms violation. There was a lot of publicity when it was passed. There were signs at all the entrances to the state on all the main roads. I remember seeing them for many years when coming in from Ct, Ny, Vt, Nh, or RI. They were there and other places as well.

I haven't seen them for a while. I haven't heard that the law is OFF the books... just don't see the signs anymore.
 
One or two months ago there was a story about this in the GOAL newspaper.

Mike Yacino, the director (now retired) had been given one of the signs. It was raffled off recently, drawing about $1000.

I don't think I have the article around to scan, but I will check.
 
I've been here since 89 and have never seen one so I guess they were either gone before then or removed shortly enough afterwards that I don't recall them . MA gun laws by themselves are not nearly as bad as many states that people seem to think have *good* laws . It's easier for us to purchase handguns than in many ( perhaps most ? ) states and I am allowed to carry in more places than , for example , Texas . The real rubbing point is your local LEO who decides what permit , if any , you receive . My local PD is outstanding and I did not have issue one with obtaining an All Lawful Purposes LTC ; it took 4 weeks from the time I handed in the paperwork until I had the license in hand on a Sunday morning . The failure of LEO's to grant permits has nothing to do with the actual gun laws and more to do with New England/MA culture . The AG approved gun bill is annoying but it doesn't in any way inhibit my ability to protect myself . It's much less of a bother than not being able to carry in a place that serves alcohol . I'd rather be sitting eating a good lunch armed with my MA OK'ed Sig than sitting in a McDonalds with a Steyr or XD that I'd like to be able to buy but can't . Our laws here are in no way wonderful , and I'm not trying to make them out to be but as long as you have decent local law enforcement , MA is a far cry from the draconian state many make it out to be .
 
When I got my CCW last year (aka License to Carry Class A here) the Cheif had told me, in our various conversations, that even though technically you had to serve a year in jail for an illegal gun, guess how many people had actually served that time since the law went on the books? One. Exactly one guy.

Now, this came from a small town cop, but he was close to retirement, so he's seen a lot I imagine.

-James
 
One more word about Massachusetts:
In my little town of Hingham which has a population of 21,000 there are over 1,000 people with full Class A CCW licenses. Think about that! That doesn't even include the more limited Class B licenses and the generic F.I.D. card holders.
Now if we could just get all of those people to vote the right way and get rid of Jean Francois Kerréé (D-Vietnam) and Teddy the K (D-Chivas) and Barney Frank (D-*)

* I would be banned for life, if I wrote what I thought here...
 
mandatory 1 year in prison, well maybe.

There use to be signs posted that said that a firearms offense is a mandatory 1 year in prison. The offense was possision of a firearm without a permit. Of course mandatory was only if you couldn't plead out to someother crime. So mandatory, wasn't.

As an interesting side bar, a NH man came into Massachusetts to retreive his kidnapped young daughter. When he went to pick her, at the Police Station of a town near the NH/Mass border, he was found to have a firearm in his truck. As he was not licensed in Mass, and with the new (at the time) "mandatory" law, he should have been arrested and put away a year.


Respectfully,

jdkelly
 
This is my first post here, here goes nothing...

i live in MA, right near the MA/NH border, and thus extensively travel on I-95/93/495, and there are no such signs as I recall(of course Im only 18, so they may have been there before)

As for Mass gun laws, my dad applied for a CCW and the chief decided that he would just give him a class B instead, and ive heard of a lot of cities up here on the north shore that refuse to give out CCW's to anyone but the police chief's buddies.
 
Hi!

Well, welcome to The High Road, Shawn. Hopefully, you enjoy it and stay a while.


ive heard of a lot of cities up here on the north shore that refuse to give out CCW's to anyone but the police chief's buddies
Click to expand...

:rolleyes:

I have no first hand experience, but I have been given to understand that that is how most(Not all there are always exceptions) things workin areas with 'May Issue' laws. Some of us normal folks can have a hard time displaying the 'Need' for a CCW that the law requires.

greg
 
shawn:
Let me, a fellow Mass whole, welcome you to the highroad!
It is up to the local police department's gun licensing officer to hand out permits. That can be annoying, it can be abused and it is unconstitutional. Other than that, it is the way it is...:fire:
On the other hand, it is common for the licensing officer to start out with a Class B permit for a year or two so that they can see if you are a mass murdering lunatic. Get the Class B, then reapply with reference letters from fellow Class A carriers, the local gun club, etc. Join GOAL and the NRA!
http://www.goal.org is the most important place to go for Massachusetts gun owners!
 
Welcome Shawn1985

Welcome Shawn1985,

You are correct the signs date back to when you were in car seats.:)

Respectfully,

jdkelly
 
Welcome, Shawn.

I live in Beverly, which AFAIK is Class A ALP friendly. Where do you live?


Class B? Let's you buy guns but not carry, right?
 
Yup. Class B allows you to buy long guns, hand guns and ammo. It allows you to transport such items to and fro the rifle range. You can not carry concealed. But get this: You are at the range and your pager goes off alerting you that your son needs to be picked up from practice. OK? Well, the felonies begin the instant you turn left to go get him, instead of turning right to go home to lock up your guns....:what:
 
From what I understand the chief in Lynn will not issue a LTC if you have a DUI on your record. I have heard the chief in Salem will not issue a LTC to ANYONE!:fire:
 
Im curious as to whether the poor subjects in Taunton were ever allowed to get their licenses renewed.
 
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