Opinion ID: 199885
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Provisions of the Act

Text: 2 Given the facial challenge to the 1998 gun control law, we must describe the law in some detail. 3
4 Owners of firearms in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts have long needed to license these weapons. See 1906 Mass. Acts 172 (requiring license for carrying loaded pistol). Before the Act went into effect, a two-tiered licensing system prevailed, based on the categories of (1) rifles and shotguns and (2) firearms, including pistols, revolvers, and other guns with short barrels. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 121 (1997). A citizen with a license could possess all these weapons, while a citizen with a Firearms Identification Card (FID Card) could only possess rifles and shotguns. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, §§ 121, 129C, 131 et seq. (1997). 5 The Act created a three-tiered licensing system by devising a new classification for large capacity weapons. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 121. A Class A license entitles its possessor to own any type of weapon, including a large capacity weapon. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 131(a). A person with a Class B license can possess only weapons, be they rifles, shotguns, or firearms, that are not large capacity weapons. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 131(b). A person with an FID Card has the same rights as someone with a Class B license except that he or she cannot carry firearms. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 129C. Again, firearms are pistols, revolvers, and guns with short barrels. Id. The Act defines a large capacity weapon as any firearm, rifle or shotgun: 6 (i) that is semiautomatic with a fixed large capacity feeding device; (ii) that is semiautomatic and capable of accepting, or readily modifiable to accept, any detachable large capacity feeding device; (iii) that employs a rotating cylinder capable of accepting more than ten rounds of ammunition in a rifle or firearm and more than five shotgun shells in the case of a shotgun or firearm; or (iv) that is an assault weapon. 7 Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 121. A large capacity feeding device is: 8 (i) a fixed or detachable magazine, box, drum, feed strip or similar device capable of accepting, or that can be readily converted to accept, more than ten rounds of ammunition or more than five shotgun shells; or (ii) a large capacity ammunition feeding device as defined in the federal Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act, 18 U.S.C. § 921(a)(31). 9 Id. The statute also excludes certain weapons from the definition of large capacity weapons: 10 The term large capacity weapon shall be a secondary designation and shall apply to a weapon in addition to its primary designation as a firearm, rifle or shotgun and shall not include: (i) any weapon that was manufactured in or prior to the year 1899; (ii) any weapon that operates by manual bolt, pump, lever or slide action; (iii) any weapon that is a single-shot weapon; (iv) any weapon that has been modified so as to render it permanently inoperable or otherwise rendered permanently unable to be designated a large capacity weapon; or (v) any weapon that is an antique or relic, theatrical prop or other weapon that is not capable of firing a projectile and which is not intended for use as a functional weapon and cannot be readily modified through a combination of available parts into an operable large capacity weapon. 11 Id.
12 To ensure that its prohibitions are clarified as needed, the Act provides that the Secretary of the Executive Office of Public Safety (Secretary) shall publish and distribute a roster of weapons which fit the statutory definition of large capacity weapons. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 131 ¾. The Secretary has compiled and published the roster. The roster is presently available on the web site of the Executive Office of Public Safety. 1 The first roster was issued on October 14, 1998, one week before the effective date of the Act. 13 The roster is not intended as an exhaustive list of weapons deemed large capacity under the terms of the Act, but it does list dozens of weapons considered large capacity weapons under the Act. Executive Office of Public Safety, Large Capacity Weapon Roster Effective February 15, 2002. The Secretary also prefaced the roster with clarifications of some elements of the statutory definition of large capacity weapons, including the terms capable of accepting and readily modifiable to accept a large capacity feeding device. Id.
14 Anyone seeking a Class A or B license may apply either to the local chief of police or the Colonel of the State Police. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 131(d). The licensing authority may issue the license if 1) the applicant is not automatically disqualified by reasons listed in the statute (such as prior conviction of certain crimes) and 2) the licensing authority determines that the applicant is a suitable person and has reason for the license. Id. A person seeking an FID card may apply to the local chief of police. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 129B. The chief of police must issue the license unless a listed reason disqualifies the applicant. Id. Anyone denied either a Class A or B license or an FID card may challenge that denial in the courts of the Commonwealth. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, §§ 129B(5), 131(f).
15 Both before and after the Act, anyone who knowingly possessed weapons without proper state licensing could be punished by imprisonment. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 260, § 10(a) (1997). The Act provided for a specific term of punishment for knowing unlicensed possession of a large capacity weapon: between two-and-a-half and ten years in prison. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 269, § 10(m). The Act also increased existing penalties for firearms dealers who sell weapons to persons who do not have the license necessary to possess such weapons. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 269, § 10F. 16 The Act also amended existing restrictions on the selling or furnishing of weapons to persons under a certain age. Massachusetts law prohibits selling or furnishing a rifle or shotgun to anyone under the age of 18, and prohibits selling or furnishing a firearm or large capacity weapon to anyone under 21 years of age. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 130. The Act updated the furnishing statute so that it would reflect the new three-tier licensing scheme. Id. It also increased the penalties for selling or furnishing such weapons to underage individuals. Id.
17 Like individuals, organizations (such as gun clubs) can also possess weapons. There is no statutory requirement that a gun club not using large capacity weapons obtain a license. However, a gun club which possesses and stores large capacity weapons must obtain a Class A license. According to the Act, a gun club with a Class A license can possess, store, and use large capacity weapons. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 131(a). A member of a Class A-licensed gun club may use large capacity weapons, even if the member does not possess a Class A license, provided that the member has at least a Class B license or an FID card. Id. A Class A licensed gun club can permit non-members without a license or an FID card to use large capacity weapons, provided that such non-members fire under the supervision of a certified firearms safety instructor or a properly licensed club member. Id. 18 Gun clubs which want to possess and store large capacity weapons must apply to the Colonel of the State Police in order to obtain a Class A license. Id. According to the statute, [t]he colonel of state police may, after an investigation, grant a Class A license to a club or facility with an on-site shooting range or gallery ... provided, however, that not less than one shareholder of such club shall be qualified and suitable to be issued such license. Id. 19 The Act also regulates target-shooting at Class A-licensed clubs. Plaintiffs challenge a regulation preventing such gun clubs from permitting shooting at targets that depict human figures, human effigies, human silhouettes or any human images thereof, except by public safety personnel performing in line with their official duties. Id. A person lawfully licensed and shooting in a place where it is lawful to fire weapons (other than a Class A-licensed club) may shoot at a target depicting a human figure. 20