Massachusetts police chiefs are unhappy with state lawmakers for dropping a provision that would have given them “sole discretion” in deciding who can own a long gun, be it a shotgun or a rifle.
On July 18, Breitbart News reported that although the state Senate passed new gun control, they first struck down the provision that police chiefs were eager to see passed.
According to Fox News, Massachusetts police chiefs already get the final say on who can or can’t have a handgun permit, and the chiefs argue that extending them the same authority for long guns would increase “public safety.”
“Police chiefs from throughout the state and gun control advocates converged on the Statehouse in Boston [on July 22] to blast state senators for removing the provision.” And Wayne Sampson, executive director of the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association, said his group is “willing to work with legislators to find a compromise.”
But Gun Owners’ Action League Executive Director Jim Wallace believes the legislators did the right thing in dropping the provision. He says there are already problems throughout the state due to the authority that chiefs have to decide who can own a handgun.
Wallace said, “Some chiefs say they just don’t hand out those licenses, or some are granted for target and hunting purposes only.”
Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.
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