Guide to gun rights in your Massachusetts town

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nr124 said:
Friend of mine just finished the interview in Watertown and her restricted LTC is pending. The LO told her "everyone gets restrictions their first time" and "come back if anything else changes and we can reassess". She works for a PD (non officer) and had other compelling reasons that she discussed during the interview but was still shut down.
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As bad as that is, if they remove restrictions upon renewal that is a big step up for Watertown. They did get a new chief a year or two ago... wonder if he changed sonething?
 
nhams said:
As bad as that is, if they remove restrictions upon renewal that is a big step up for Watertown. They did get a new chief a year or two ago... wonder if he changed sonething?
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Agreed. Weren't they downgrading renewals too? One of the worst towns, up there with Brookline, Medford, and Winchester.
 
MAJoe said:
Agreed. Weren't they downgrading renewals too? One of the worst towns, up there with Brookline, Medford, and Winchester.
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Who said Winchester was one of the worst towns ? I've lived here for 17 years and never had a problem getting my ALP LTC. It's true the new chief does require everyone to have two letters of references even if you've had your LTC for more than 40 years which I have. But it seems like many police chiefs are doing that nowadays. The problem is that there are no set of standards for licensing in Massachusetts. Police chiefs can just make up their own. Sadly, because of this some people just fall through the cracks. What can I say, 200 people get an restricted LTC in Boston, while a few people for reasons unknown get an unrestricted LTC. Until the laws are changed and the standards are etched in stone this is the way it will be.
 
firecontrol123 said:
Who said Winchester was one of the worst towns ? I've lived here for 17 years and never had a problem getting my ALP LTC. It's true the new chief does require everyone to have two letters of references even if you've had your LTC for more than 40 years which I have. But it seems like many police chiefs are doing that nowadays. The problem is that there are no set of standards for licensing in Massachusetts. Police chiefs can just make up their own. Sadly, because of this some people just fall through the cracks. What can I say, 200 people get an restricted LTC in Boston, while a few people for reasons unknown get an unrestricted LTC. Until the laws are changed and the standards are etched in stone this is the way it will be.
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YES there are. The standards are clearly spelled out. The Chief just uses the threat of unsuitability to enforce their unlawful additional requirements. The courts may still be, incorrectly, enforcing "broad discretion" for unsuitability but I think if a Chief denied because someone refused to comply with the unlawful requirements the court would have no choice but to approve.... Ya, I know, the Chief would have to be stupid to actually put this in as the reason for denial.
 
Changing from a may issue to a shall issue state would solve all of these problems. firecontrol 123 is right, the only standards are what the chief of police says they are. Massachusetts general laws as well as the 2nd amendment are meaningless, they might as well be written on toilet paper. The bottom line is the chief always gets the final word. If you are uncooperative during the application process you WILL be labeled UNSUITABLE. Now what were you saying about those standards ? As far as the courts go you can't depend on them to do the right thing either. And even if you do get your LTC, when all is said and done how much do you think it will cost you ?
 
Just because i enjoy adding to the saga at this point:

Interviewed 9/25/17 for an LTC. my fid expires in june.
First update that my hard copy 2/22/18 issue date was at the station on 3/27 waiting to be processed and verified. Currently 3/30 and its not in my hands yet. You may say its been an exercise in patience.
 
That is some infuriating garbage that a woman working for a PD in a different town still got denied in Watertown.

Might as well not comply and just carry with the restricted LTC. The likelihood of her being caught is close to zero.

That's honestly how I feel the more I read about the non-sense that police chiefs pull in some cities and towns. Non-compliance is civil disobedience.

And yet, some of you still think they won't come for your guns if it ever comes to that.

L O L [rofl2][rofl2][rofl2][rofl2]

They have proven time and again they will enforce any law, no matter how bogus. If we didn't think this was true, then why did all the shops (AFAIK) comply with Maura Healy's ridiculous reinterpretation of the AWB? You know damn well the cops would enforce her memo if she gave them marching orders to do so, be it begrudgingly or with gusto.
 
jbosco said:
Just because i enjoy adding to the saga at this point:

Interviewed 9/25/17 for an LTC. my fid expires in june.
First update that my hard copy 2/22/18 issue date was at the station on 3/27 waiting to be processed and verified. Currently 3/30 and its not in my hands yet. You may say its been an exercise in patience.
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Final update- notified on and in hand 4/3/18. Just shy of 7 months.
 
New here but I figured I'd chime in about Sutton, where I moved a couple years ago. First time renewing here and... it couldn't have been easier. I walked in and the woman in charge of firearms stuff immediately brought me into her office and FLEW through the online forms while I just sat there. I barely even saw what she was putting in (I did see "all lawful purposes" at one point.) Then she quickly fingerprinted me and sent me on my way with my copy of the application. A few weeks later and my new license just showed up. It's almost like living in a free state...
 
Waltham tips:

-If you're a naturalized citizen, be advised that the PD can't (or more likely won't) look you up by the naturalization number you provide on their form. You actually need to provide a copy of your certificate, even though it doesn't say that on their application.
-The application says that only new applicants have to provide a copy of their safety course certificate. Turns out that renewals have to provide it too, even if you're renewing as an instructor who teaches that very course. No, it doesn't matter that your current LTC is proof that you've passed the course already. The application doesn't say any of this.
-You know how dollar bills all say "this note is legal tender for all debts, public and private"? Not in Waltham (actually I think most towns are like this). You have to get a bank check ($10 fee at BoA) or a money order (a buck and change at CVS).

That said, I've heard good things about the licensing officer himself and all the cops I've dealt with have been good.


Update:
Officer Modica retired. Licenses are now handled by Officer Palmer - really nice guy, seems to know his stuff (e.g. asked why I have a NH license when they no longer require one, mentioned the Utah license (which I don't even have), etc). He said that the Chief's current policy is to issue unrestricted to new applicants, making Waltham a solid GREEN city. Turnaround time shouldn't be too bad - he said that he tends to not even accept renewals that are three months that out because it's way too early.

Other than the obvious infringement of even needing a license in the first place, my only issue is with the application process, as described above. Once you sit down for the interview all goes well and smoothly, 10min process. Also, unlike Boston, Waltham schedules interviews at normal human hours, as early as 7:30am.

Good job, Waltham. 9/10, would apply again :D
 
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kalash said:
Waltham tips:

-If you're a naturalized citizen, be advised that the PD can't (or more likely won't) look you up by the naturalization number you provide on their form. You actually need to provide a copy of your certificate, even though it doesn't say that on their application.
-The application says that only new applicants have to provide a copy of their safety course certificate. Turns out that renewals have to provide it too, even if you're renewing as an instructor who teaches that very course. No, no one cares that your current LTC is proof that you've passed the course already. The application doesn't say any of this.
-When you come in during the hours listed on the application to turn it in, don't expect whoever can give you a receipt to actually be there. Since you need the receipt in case they don't issue your renewal before your old license expires, you'll have to come back another day.
-You know how dollar bills all say "this note is legal tender for all debts, public and private"? Not in Waltham. You have to get a bank check ($10 fee at BoA) or a money order (a buck and change at CVS).

That said, I've heard good things about the licensing officer himself and all the cops I've dealt with have been good.
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Well as long as all the cops are good then, all is fine.
 
Dracut. Long delay but no problems. Class A unrestricted. My wife and I plus 2 friends all first time. The officer we talked with was very nice and professional.
 
kalash said:
Waltham tips:

-If you're a naturalized citizen, be advised that the PD can't (or more likely won't) look you up by the naturalization number you provide on their form. You actually need to provide a copy of your certificate, even though it doesn't say that on their application.
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Or you can just bring in a valid US Passport.
 
kalash said:
They did not give me that option. Also, the form doesn't say anything about a passport either.
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They can't refuse to recognize a value US Passport. Hard Stop. Comm2A went after Andover over this last year. We will do this again with any town that only accepts birth or naturalization certificates. We had attorney Scrimo send a nasty-gram to Lynn over this issue. Guess what? They change their application: http://lynnpolice.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/LTC-APP-NO-PASS-REMOVED.pdf Note the file name.
 
That's still not my point. The application does not say that I need to provide *any* documentation whatsoever if I'm a naturalized citizen, other than filling out the information they ask for.
 
kalash said:
Waltham tips:

-If you're a naturalized citizen, be advised that the PD can't (or more likely won't) look you up by the naturalization number you provide on their form. You actually need to provide a copy of your certificate, even though it doesn't say that on their application.
-The application says that only new applicants have to provide a copy of their safety course certificate. Turns out that renewals have to provide it too, even if you're renewing as an instructor who teaches that very course. No, it doesn't matter that your current LTC is proof that you've passed the course already. The application doesn't say any of this.
-You know how dollar bills all say "this note is legal tender for all debts, public and private"? Not in Waltham (actually I think most towns are like this). You have to get a bank check ($10 fee at BoA) or a money order (a buck and change at CVS).

That said, I've heard good things about the licensing officer himself and all the cops I've dealt with have been good.


Update:
Officer Modica retired. Licenses are now handled by Officer Palmer - really nice guy, seems to know his stuff (e.g. asked why I have a NH license when they no longer require one, mentioned the Utah license (which I don't even have), etc). He said that the Chief's current policy is to issue unrestricted to new applicants, making Waltham a solid GREEN city. Turnaround time shouldn't be too bad - he said that he tends to not even accept renewals that are three months that out because it's way too early.

Other than the obvious infringement of even needing a license in the first place, my only issue is with the application process, as described above. Once you sit down for the interview all goes well and smoothly, 10min process. Also, unlike Boston, Waltham schedules interviews at normal human hours, as early as 7:30am.

Good job, Waltham. 9/10, would apply again :D
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Thank you.

Do they require letters for renweals?
 
Billerica renewal:
41 days from dropping off application to in my hands.
20 days from actually doing the paperwork to my hands.

The woman who does LTCs is super nice, and is really conscientious about how she schedules appointments: She orders them by urgency, rather than FIFO. e.g. if you put in your renewal application four months before your birthday, it'll sit on the pile for a while, but if you screw up and leave it to the last weeks, she'll put it on the top of the pile.

This might look arbitrary from the outside, but I'm really glad she does it this way, she's really trying to make sure nobody get caught out with an expired LTC.

I didn't ask about how she processes new applications. My one data point (my wife) is 72 days from drop-off, 29 days from the interview/fingerprints. Not ideal, but not nearly as bad as some towns. (yea, I know, that doesn't make it OK)

I asked about MG licences, and was told in no uncertain terms that *NOBODY* gets a MG licence in Billerica, not even cops. They've issued TWO (2), to members of the SWAT team. (what the hell is the 17th safest town in America doing with a SWAT team, and why do they need machineguns?)

I inferred (although I'm not sure I understood correctly) that they won't even *renew* MG licences, which seems like a *huge* legal problem for anyone who moves to Billerica.
 
milktree said:
(what the hell is the 17th safest town in America doing with a SWAT team, and why do they need machineguns?)
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I believe is Billerica part of NEMLEC. So they'd be on the regional SWAT team, for whatever help that is. And "machine guns" would include M4s, which are ideally suited for Special Weapons And Tactics teams.

While the Patrol Rifle Student Manual describes a rifle as a "superior tool," here's the Select Fire Instructor Student Manual Manual.
 
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Mesatchornug said:
I believe is Billerica part of NEMLEC. So they'd be on the regional SWAT team, for whatever help that is. And "machine guns" would include M4s, which are ideally suited for Special Weapons And Tactics teams.

While the Patrol Rifle Student Manual describes a rifle as a "superior tool," here's the Select Fire Instructor Student Manual Manual.
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"superior tools", but the rest of us can't have any even for collecting.... That's sweet.
 
Hey All,
I'm looking at potentially moving to Rowley and am wondering if anyone has had recent experience with them. They are on the list as "Green but formerly Black", is this still the case? I live in MA now and already have my LTC but it is restricted to "Sporting". I'd like to renew it with ALP as soon as I move, think there will be any difficulties?

I've looked several pages back in the thread and didn't see anything about Rowley, so maybe that's a good sign...
 
bostonasphalt2 said:
Comm2A 2017 Licensing Scorecard

Check that to see the latest trends in restrictions for LTC issuance by town.
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JClark said:
Hey All,
I'm looking at potentially moving to Rowley and am wondering if anyone has had recent experience with them. They are on the list as "Green but formerly Black", is this still the case? I live in MA now and already have my LTC but it is restricted to "Sporting". I'd like to renew it with ALP as soon as I move, think there will be any difficulties?

I've looked several pages back in the thread and didn't see anything about Rowley, so maybe that's a good sign...
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Did you look back? If you did, you would have seen my post that says where to look to get licensing trends one page back
 
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