I thought under LEOSA which is a federal law, retirement was defined as leaving honorably with a minimum of 15 years service. I know people that retired on disability with 10 years of service that we're not afforded l e o s a protection. A resignation is not a retirement, but a resignation after 15 years would be covered under the federal statute as long as they were in good standing when they left the department and met the other criteria IMHO. The problem is we are comparing apples to oranges here it is a state statute that is ambiguous. Would a Massachusetts sworn officer who was injured on the job in medically retired after 5 years be considered retired under Massachusetts law? They would probably not be covered under the federal law but Federal isn't the question here it is state
HR 218 in 2004 required 15 yrs, a pension, an ID, and an annual qualification. Someone medically retired after the probationary period completed, regardless of years served also qualified. NO state permit required, no restrictions on the type/model/Serial Number of handgun carried.
LEOSA was modified some years later and changed to 10 yrs aggregate (official retirement NOT required), NO pension required.
MA created a CMR to be as restrictive as possible. It only allowed MA municipal and state police officers to qualify under LEOSA, must maintain a valid MA LTC, etc.
My former PD in MA didn't issue many "retired" IDs, at least under the chief when I "retired". Subsequent chiefs may have changed that policy, I never inquired.
If the new legislation in play kills off the NR LTCs, I will no longer be able to qualify MA residents under LEOSA, or provide BFS certificates (both require instructor to maintain a valid LTC), nor get my annual LEOSA qualification done in MA (NH is a PITA to get LEOSA qualified annually). Time will tell.