The Huffington Post ran an article about Massachusetts tough gun laws. We are one of the only states that gives local police departments a say in whether or not a local citizen is allowed to get a gun permit. We’re also the state that had the lowest gun fatality rate in 2016.
The article uses Newton as its main example in telling the story
Great article showing how to control gun deaths from legal guns. However, I believe the vast majority of gun deaths are from illegal guns…
Its a shame we cant have a zero tolerance policy towards anyone caught with an illegal gun. Whatever laws we have don’t seem to discourage illegal gun ownership
The amount of gun produced and sold has tripled since 1986. 3 million manufactured in 1986, 9.3 million firearms manufactured in 2015 (AFT). Roughly 1/3 of guns produced are sold to the ‘domestic’ market.
Massachusetts is in the top ten states profiting from the firearms industry according to the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Guns and Ammunition Manufacturing are a $16 bill US industry. This is the Military Industrial complex Dwight Eisenhower warned against in his final presidential speech.
The gun used in the Parkland School shootings was made here in Massachusetts.
We need to go back to the good old days where a mass shooting, like the Saint Valentines Day Massacre (7 killed) could get machine guns banned in the USA.
Fact checks:
>We are one of the only states that gives local police departments a say in whether or not a local citizen is allowed to get a gun permit.
Massachusetts is one of only three states that HAS a local police department in every part of the state (CT, RI being the other two). The other states rely heavily on state and county governments because they don’t even have complete coverage of city and town governments.
>We’re also the state that had the lowest gun fatality rate in 2016.
This stat is misleading because it combines murder and suicides, which Mass has one of the lowest suicide rates regardless of method.
Massachusetts ranks only 19th lowest for murder by firearm.
Vermont and New Hampshire have the lowest firearm murder rate per capita in the US–and do not even require a state license to own a firearm.
DC has a near ban on firearms and has by far the highest murder rate by firearm.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firearm_death_rates_in_the_United_States_by_state#Murders
Actually not a fan of the “local police get to decide” clause. From what I recall (granted this was >20 years ago) from growing up in a small MA town, if the local PD didn’t like you — or it just didn’t want to be bothered — too bad, no license for you! Yes there’s an appeal process, but lots of folks don’t have the disposable income to lawyer up. The police discretion can be too discretionary.
On the other hand the (lack of) gun laws in many other states and on a national basis is a much bigger priority. Once we can be reasonably secure that there is some sort of consistent, workable national system to keep firearms sales out of the hands of people who clearly shouldn’t have them… then I’m all for ditching local PD reviews.