Loaded pump shotgun next to bed for home defense- is there a way to do it in MA?

[reluctant 43]

I live in MA so even though there are no longer any kids in my house, to stay legal I currently keep all my guns unloaded in a locked gun safe in the basement except for one revolver that I keep loaded in a small drawer-mounted quick access safe next to the bed for night defense. Even that I put away in the big gun safe unloaded when the grandchildren are around. So I guess I am as legal as you can get even if sort of defenseless when the kids are around (maybe when I should have a defense the most?). But as I get older and less nimble I would really rather have a loaded pump shotgun next to the bed for night defense. Anyone know of a way to secure such a gun for fast access without putting a quick access safe big enough for a single shotgun (does this even exist) in the bedroom? Seems to me it is almost impossible in this state to protect yourself- things have to be so damned locked up you can't get at them, particularly if you are at an age when moving around fast and dealing with lock codes quickly is more of a challenge in high stress situations...

 

[atmay]

Hard case + combo lock


Alternatively, there are a few companies out there that make locks designed for quick access to long arms. They usually lock around the action.

Santa Cruz Gunlocks is one such company. They're geared more towards police, but some of the stuff they offer might suit your needs.

 

[0sportsman0]

Theres a thread on hear that might help
The title of the thread was Wall Mounted Shotgun Lock?

 

[Kevlar]

There are several options. As atmay mentioned, there's Santa Cruz. There is also the "Life Jacket". Or the "Breech Vault". Or the "Loc Box".

 

[Squished]

In order to be safe and in compliance with the law, I suggest leaving it unloaded and using a keyed trigger lock. I'm sure if you tell the intruder to wait 5 minutes while you find the key and load the firearm he/she will understand.

 

[45collector]

You can leave it loaded, unlocked and ready to rock next to your bed all night long...

Just don't fall asleep or leave the room without taking it with you and you'll be all set. Not so hard eh?

 

[vellnueve]

Sleep with it in your hands.

 

[Twigg]

Obligatory "Move to New Hampshire." post.

Seriously tho, the Mossberg Loc-Box looks like the best solution for you.

 

[Masterguns]

put it in one of these, look its just a guitar case officer...

 

[DukeNukem]

I don't see how its any different then keeping your ccw on your nigtstand within arms length,they are both under your direct control.

 

[Coyote33]

Close, just needs a lock: http://www.the-backup.com/

 

[Knuckle Dragger]

Hard case + combo lock

Section 131L makes no reference to 'hard' case.

...locked container or equipped with a tamper-resistant mechanical lock or other safety device, properly engaged...

And there's little case law to define the particulars of what is and is not a case, lock, or device. The 'device' on my Remington 1187 that locks the safety in the 'on' should be sufficient, one would think, assuming that it's properly engaged.

The problem is, as Mr. Lojko found out, is that police and prosecutors make up the rules as they go. Mr. Lojko had to get to an appellate court before his locked case was recognized as a locked case.

 

[atmay]

Section 131L makes no reference to 'hard' case. And there's little case law to define the particulars of what is and is not a case, lock, or device.

That may be true, but I've never seen a lockable soft case. I'd be interested in seeing one, if they do indeed exist.

Hinged hard cases, imo, also perform this duty much better than a soft case. I've tried both, and it's a hard case I have under the bed.

 

[cevtv]

I don't see how its any different then keeping your ccw on your nigtstand within arms length,they are both under your direct control.

Not if you are asleep.......

 

[Knuckle Dragger]

That may be true, but I've never seen a lockable soft case. I'd be interested in seeing one, if they do indeed exist.

Hinged hard cases, imo, also perform this duty much better than a soft case. I've tried both, and it's a hard case I have under the bed.

Just lock the zippers together on a soft-sided case and you have a locked case. It meets the statutory requirement and the law's intent. Now, I agree with you that this is far from the best method of securing a firearm from either theft or unauthorized access.

 

[DukeNukem]

Not if you are asleep.......

I don't sleep........I wait.

 

[GSG]

I don't see how its any different then keeping your ccw on your nigtstand within arms length,they are both under your direct control.

When Cross-X was available, he stated that he'd never seen an instance where that defense worked.

That may be true, but I've never seen a lockable soft case. I'd be interested in seeing one, if they do indeed exist.

http://www.dunbarbankpak.com/product.php?id=598

 

[atmay]

Just lock the zippers together on a soft-sided case and you have a locked case. It meets the statutory requirement and the law's intent. Now, I agree with you that this is far from the best method of securing a firearm from either theft or unauthorized access.

The two I own have a single zipper.

http://www.dunbarbankpak.com/product.php?id=598

Jackass.

 

[reluctant 43]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I think I will go with some variation of the loc-box mounted to the wall, although I hate that most of them seem to be keyed. Might be a problem in the dark. Any lawyers out there who know the case law-- how about if you keep the bedroom door locked? Not a bad strategy for slowing down an intruder anyway.

 

[Kevlar]

IANAL, but there is case law...

Commonwealth v. Parzick, 64 Mass. App. Ct. 846, 850 (2005)

 

[TimMcG74]

I have mine by the bed loaded in a hard case with a combo pad lock. I tethered a small flashlight to the case so I can open it quickly in the dark. My house isn't large and I am a light sleeper, so I like to think I would have enough lead time to get to it. Who knows, though.

 

[reluctant 43]

Thanks for this Kevlar. Maybe if the bedroom were locked in a way that required an actual key (one not available to an intruder) to open the door a good lawyer could argue it is a "secured container" according to this case,

We likewise conclude that G. L. c. 140, § 131L, requires guns to be maintained in locked containers in a way that will deter all but the most persistent from gaining access. Even a door locked with a key is not secure if the key is hanging next to the lock. Assuming the defendant's bedroom to be a container, and further that it was locked at the time of the theft, [Note 4] the defendant was in violation of G. L. c. 140, § 131L, because the lock was easily defeated by anyone with access to a bobby pin and did not prevent ready access by anyone other than the lawful owner. Because the evidence supports a finding that the room was not a securely locked container, denial of the defendant's motions for a required finding of not guilty was proper

but the government has so much discretion in these cases it just isn't worth taking the chance. Guess I will stick with a wall loc box to be safe...

 

[Stef]

Hypothetically speaking of course, if you leave Mr. Shotgun leaning against the wall next to your bed with an opened trigger lock lying next to it on the nightstand, how could someone prove that it wasn't locked up while you slept?

 

[theGringo]

I don't sleep........I wait.

Brilliant!

Obey the law at your peril. Only a fool would lock his home defense weapon while inside his home.

 

[GSG]

Jackass.

I could fit a handgun in there.

Any lawyers out there who know the case law-- how about if you keep the bedroom door locked?

I'm not a lawyer, but I've read a ton of caselaw. If the bedroom didn't have windows, it might fly after a lengthy a costly court battle.

Hypothetically speaking of course, if you leave Mr. Shotgun leaning against the wall next to your bed with an opened trigger lock lying next to it on the nightstand, how could someone prove that it wasn't locked up while you slept?

A fire in the home:

http://masscases.com/cases/app/76/76massappct87.html

On March 16, 2006, Randy Girard, who was both a fire fighter with the Townsend fire department and a police detective with the Townsend police department, was working in his capacity as a fire fighter. At approximately 11:50 A.M., Girard was dispatched to a residence owned by the defendant's mother, Maureen Farnsworth (Mrs. Farnsworth), based on a report of smoke inside...

Girard ...continued with his fire fighting assignment by checking the fuse panel and walls and ceilings for signs of fire.

Girard moved his search to the top floor of the home via a stairwell in the rear of the kitchen. As he went up the stairs, Girard noticed an open, doorless loft at the top of the stairs. Mrs. Farnsworth identified this area as the defendant's bedroom. A shotgun, unprotected by a trigger lock, was leaning against the wall in the corner of this room.

also

http://masscases.com/cases/app/57/57massappct19.html

On December 26, 1999, a fire broke out in the house in which the defendant and her husband resided. During a "cause-and-origin" survey of the house after the blaze, an investigator saw in plain view in an upstairs bedroom a twelve-gauge shotgun standing in a corner against the wall... The shotgun was immediately confiscated.

Your landlord or their agent entering your dwelling for routine maintenance:

http://masscases.com/cases/sjc/410/410mass820.html

Corcoran had scheduled extermination work in the units in Guirola's building for January 11, 1989. It sent notices to tenants to that effect in late December, 1988, and again on January 9, 1989. The notices to Guirola were slipped between her door and door jamb.

When the exterminators entered Guirola's apartment on January 11, 1989, they noticed a box of ammunition on the kitchen table, a barrel of a sawed-off shotgun poking over the broom closet...They informed the site manager, who was outside. The site manager entered the apartment and saw the sawed-off shotgun and ammunition in the kitchen, as well as the notice of extermination on top of the refrigerator. He returned to his office and telephoned the housing authority police to inform them of the situation.

Now the above case was before the storage law passed, but landlords regularly enter units in MA, if that happened today they'd be facing charges for it.

I also met a guy who's SO had a medical emergency in the middle of the night, FD responded, saw his handgun under the bed and notified the PD, who charged him and took his LTC.

 

[reluctant 43]

Yeah, thanks for taking the time to line these up GSG. As Kevlar listed there seems to be a number of options that would make storage of the loaded gun unquestionably legal. I will go with one of these locked wall units. Might add a lock to the bedroom door too - just to slow the bastard down enough for me to find the freaking key. Probably best to have a setup that the average cop on first seeing it would think, "Yeah, thats OK.." rather than something that makes him say, "Jeez, I wonder if that's OK..."

 

[Aum]

Reluctant,
I just posted a review in another thread: Wall Mounted Shotgun Lock?, for a quick access wall mounted shotgun lock called ShotLock. Might be worth checking out.

 

[Realtor MA]

There is a gadget called an electro-lock The push of a button releases the firearm The button is hidden of course. That would be ideal.

ETA. I'm not sure if it meets the storage requirements.

 

[atmay]

There is a gadget called an electro-lock The push of a button releases the firearm The button is hidden of course. That would be ideal.

ETA. I'm not sure if it meets the storage requirements.

This is how most/all of the Santa Cruz locks work, with a key override.

 

[one-eyed Jack]

Brilliant!

Obey the law at your peril. Only a fool would lock his home defense weapon while inside his home.

We have a winner. Jack.