Do Massachusetts Gun Laws apply to all? (Part I)

June 21, 6:44 PMBoston Gun Rights ExaminerRon Bokleman

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Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone

There are a few social issues in this country that, if judged by the output of so called mainstream media outlets, seem to be driven by pure emotion rather than logic and the laws of our republic. One could, I believe, argue that the top two issues falling into that category are those of abortion and gun control.

I believe that despite the constant flow of emotional rhetoric and lack of facts from these sources Americans can and will ultimately insist that logic and the law prevail, but not unlike the dreadful Dred Scott decision these things can take time to correct.

We’ve already had enough discussion of how the media feeds these issues with false and misleading information, but when either the United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) or a State Supreme Court decide to take up cases involving either issue its very big news indeed.

On Friday the Massachusetts Supreme Court has decided to hear an appeal (SJC will review gun lock ruling, Law at odds with US high court) of a case that may have only short-term implications and yet the complexity and implications are lost on the general public, and the so called experts at the Boston Globe, and the Boston Herald.

I say lost because the issue is a complex one and given that most of general public have an attention span of a ferret on a double-cappuccino when it comes to digesting complex issues, they can and will do their utmost to ignore the nuances that make this so important. That aside, I’m going to try anyway to clearly lay this out as simply as I can.

In the DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA ET AL. v. HELLER (07-290) decided June 26, 2008 clearly ruled in favor of the long held view that you and I have an individual right to keep and bear arms. The ruling also established that requiring a firearm, available for self-defense, to be kept under lock or disassembled was also unconstitutional.

The handgun ban and the trigger-lock requirement (as applied toself-defense) violate the Second Amendment.

Similarly, the requirement that any lawful firearm in the home be disassembled or bound by a trigger lock makes it impossible for citizens to use arms for the core lawful purpose of self-defense and is hence unconstitutional. -- D.C. v. Heller, June 26, 2008

The ruling by the Supreme Court concerning firearm storage became an immediate issue in Massachusetts when Lt. Richard Bolduc of the Massachusetts State Police used the D.C. v. Heller case as his defense in a case involving his 12-year old son. One day before the Supreme Court decision, Bolduc’s 12-year-old son took the unloaded weapon — a Sig Sauer P226 .40-caliber handgun — from an unlocked bureau, brought it outside in his Sandwich neighborhood, pointed the gun at a 5-year-old girl and pulled the trigger.

Bolduc's lawyer, Daniel O'Malley, argued the charge should be dismissed based on the Supreme Court's ruling that found a Washington D.C. handgun ban unconstitutional. The ruling also said requiring trigger locks hinders a person's right to self defense. Against some local opposition, on February 21, 2009 the case was dismissed against the officer, and he was returned to full active duty. Notice that no appeal was made to the Massachusetts State Supreme Court in this case making the previous opposition columns points worth considering.

In my former role as the Norfolk County League of Sportsmen’s Clubs President I wrote that while I was glad the court upheld Heller, I was concerned that this was a case of special treatment and we would see what happened when an average citizen was found guilty of similar charges. Well, we didn’t have to wait too long as another case was already in progress.

M.G.L. c. 140, § 131L makes it unlawful to store or keep any firearm, rifle or shotgun including, but not limited to, large capacity weapons, or machine gun in any place unless such weapon is secured in a locked container or equipped with a tamper-resistant mechanical lock or other safety device, properly engaged so as to render such weapon inoperable by any person other than the owner or other lawfully authorized.

On April 1, 2008, several months before the Heller decision, Billerica police were called to the Fernwood Road home of Richard Runyan, for a report of a BB gun shot through a window. Police found Runyan’s 18-year-old son, Alexander, shooting a BB gun out the window at his neighbor, William Durant. Officers seized the BB gun from Alexander, who has Down syndrome.

Alexander, who was home alone during the day, showed police his father’s bedroom where they found two other guns stored under the bed in soft g carrying cases. Officers found a 12-gauge shotgun bound by a trigger lock and an unsecured semi-automatic hunting rifle, according to police reports.

On Aug. 14, 2008 Runyan filed an instant motion to dismiss the gun charges against him based on the same defense as Lt. Richard Bolduc.

On March 5th of 2009, Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone appealed the dismissal of the Runyan case to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) – shortly after the case of Lt. Richard Bolduc, facing nearly identical charges, had already been dismissed. Note that no appeal has been made by Barnstable County District Attorney Michael O’Keefe concerning the Bolduc case.

• Why would the SJC take up this case on appeal?
• How would the SJC be viewed by the citizens of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts if they indeed were to rule against Runyan?
• What if they rule in favor of Runyan? What, if any would be the short or long term ramifications?

We’ll take a deeper look into these questions in Part II.

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