Uechi-Ryu.com

I spoke briefly with representatives of both campaigns.

The Healey Campaign does not wish to change the laws now in effect, withone exception.

She wishes to have the License approval and disapproval of licences done by the Department of Public Safety but the processing would still be handled by the local police.

Actually this is a positive thing if you life in a town where permits are 'not given'

Deval Patrick's rep. gave to me a totally vague answer. I couldn't repeat it if I wished to something about 'doing what is necessary to keep guns out of the wrong hands.'

Ouch. Too dangerously vague for me..

Perhaps if one merely could enforce the laws on the books-which one can't without a house to house search.

Such methods would never be allowed.

JT

She wishes to have the License approval and disapproval of licences making done by the Department of Public Safety but the processing would still be handled by the local police.

What would the police role be, more specifically? A police chief who is loathe to issue a license might throw an application in a drawer for years.

A very good Question.

This happens now, of course.

The best result would have a law which stated that if a Chief did that, an applican would be able to apply directly to the Department of Public Safety.

But since no change in the law has actually been available to review, I can't say.

But ay least the had a more or less specific change in mind and a statement that they did 'not wish to make things any worse' for the law abiding citizen.

The scariest thing remains the matter of preemption. If the State can be deemed to have 'preempted' local authorities power with regard to the power to issue permits, the cities ans towns would not be able to enact their own measures, as has happened in "Grove Park" and "Skokie" where the municipalites were allowed to have their own prohibition on hand gun ownership.

JT