Old Post-Bans now Pre-Bans?

[SPO38]

Please forgive me if this is a silly question, but are pre 7/20/16 guns now considered pre-ban? Does the "guidance" from the AGO only apply to "copies"?

The Guidance will not be applied to future possession, ownership or transfer of Assault weapons by dealers, provided that the dealer has written evidence that the weapons were transferred to the dealer in the Commonwealth prior to July 20, 2016, and provided further that a transfer made after July 20, 2016, if any, is made to persons or businesses in states where such weapons are legal.

 

[robjax]

my take on it is this...if the AG said all the BS neutering we've been doing to be Mass Compliant was not legal anyway then all the Post-Pre bans can all have collapsible/folding stocks...bayo lugs and flash hiders. Still screwed on the mags though...but if you can find some pre-pre bans you'd be ok....

 

[jasons]

The actual law includes a date:

Section 131M. No person shall sell, offer for sale, transfer or possess an assault weapon or a large capacity feeding device that was not otherwise lawfully possessed on September 13, 1994. Whoever not being licensed under the provisions of section 122 violates the provisions of this section shall be punished, for a first offense, by a fine of not less than $1,000 nor more than $10,000 or by imprisonment for not less than one year nor more than ten years, or by both such fine and imprisonment, and for a second offense, by a fine of not less than $5,000 nor more than $15,000 or by imprisonment for not less than five years nor more than 15 years, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

The provisions of this section shall not apply to: (i) the possession by a law enforcement officer; or (ii) the possession by an individual who is retired from service with a law enforcement agency and is not otherwise prohibited from receiving such a weapon or feeding device from such agency upon retirement.​

Now maybe (apparently) it's true that the AG's office can change the interpretation of the law, but it can't change the actual law by fiat. The date in the law is the date in the law and prosecutorial discretion is just that.


So, if you want to bet your ass on this or the next AG's discretion, especially after today's complete disregard for 20+ years of precedent, by all means go for it.

 

[Snora]

my take on it is this...if the AG said all the BS neutering we've been doing to be Mass Compliant was not legal anyway then all the Post-Pre bans can all have collapsible/folding stocks...bayo lugs and flash hiders. Still screwed on the mags though...but if you can find some pre-pre bans you'd be ok....

I guess I'm reading it the opposite way. Post-pre ban (is that the phrase we're using?) was never legal regardless of configuration in MA and Healey is now enforcing it. September 13 1994 is the cutoff. It's all or nothing if we're going letter of the law as interpreted by the person in charge of enforcing it.

 

[dw617]

.

 

[pupchow]

So, are "original " pre-bans still legal to transfer in MA?

Pre-ban is pre-loophole directive, therefore I would say "yes" to transfer. Under the current directive, the only benefit to a pre-ban would be the ability to transfer it, as I see it.

 

[ThePreBanMan]

my take on it is this...if the AG said all the BS neutering we've been doing to be Mass Compliant was not legal anyway then all the Post-Pre bans can all have collapsible/folding stocks...bayo lugs and flash hiders. Still screwed on the mags though...but if you can find some pre-pre bans you'd be ok....

That's my take as well. If it was illegal - then it's illegal regardless.

 

[not new guy]

So, are "original " pre-bans still legal to transfer in MA?

Yes.

 

[JNewell]

Or to put it differently, it appears that the AG's "copycat" "guidance" only applies to guns that were subject to the federal and/or the later MA AWB.

 

[Mass-diver]

So, are "original " pre-bans still legal to transfer in MA?

Yes it's the "copies" that are illegal via a bullshit interpretation, pre-ban assault rifles are ok per MGL.

But, they cost like 50k now.