RE: AG Healey's Unconstitutional Assault Weapons Announcement
McAndrews, Caitlin (HOU) <
[email protected]> Mon, Jul 25, 2016 at 5:05 PM
To: amm5061
Dear Mr. amm5061,
Thank you for your emails regarding Attorney General Maura Healey’s enforcement notice of Massachusetts’ assault weapons ban.
Representative Sannicandro and I understand your concerns regarding preserving the constitutional right to bear arms, and agree that we must protect this right. We feel strongly that we must also protect the lives and security of our community members, particularly in an America that has been plagued by unprecedented levels – and resultant fatality counts – of gun violence. In the face of the Commonwealth’s existing assault weapons ban – which details the functional components that distinguish assault-style weapons and expressly states that “copies or duplicates” of the enumerated weapons are also banned – some manufacturers have continued to produce such weapons with slight modifications to make them appear to be compliant with state law for many years. Despite this approach, these weapons are essentially, for all intents and purposes, no different than those long banned under existing law.
Given the similarities “Massachusetts-Compliant” weapons share with those military-style weapons banned under state law, and their well-documented capacity for unfathomable destruction in our communities, our office supports the Attorney General in her efforts to close a loophole that some manufacturers have knowingly abused. The Attorney General’s notice clarifies what it means to be a “copy” or “duplicate” of a prohibited weapon under G.L. c.140, §§121, 128 and 131M, and it announces the AGO’s intention to enforce the state’s ban on sales of copycat assault rifles for all sales conducted after July 20. The directive does not create a new law, and it does not apply to individuals who purchased one of these weapons before July 20. Our office has fielded concerns voiced by constituents who are troubled by the Attorney General’s decision making process. Chapter 93A of the Massachusetts General Laws entrusts the Attorney General with the independent authority to regulate firearms within the state, as part of the AGO’s responsibility to safeguard Massachusetts citizens, and we believe that her recent directive, which is intended to stop the proliferation of deadly weapons, falls within that power.
Please know that Representative Sannicandro genuinely appreciates and values your input, and respects your concerns. He remains confident that communities across the state will utilize the learning moment offered by this contentious and divisive issue to reflect on our shared values of community and respect for human life. Our office will continue to monitor developments related to the Attorney General’s directive to ensure that her office’s enforcement does not extend beyond what is described in the notice and is commensurate with one’s right to bear arms.
Thank you again for your email. Should you have any more questions related to this, or any other issue, please do not hesitate to contact our office directly at (617) 722-2013. You may also direct further questions or comments on this matter to the Attorney General Office’s Consumer Assistance and Response Division hotline at (617) 727-8400.
Sincerely,
Cait McAndrews
Office of Representative Tom Sannicandro
7th Middlesex District
Chair, Joint Committee on Higher Education
Room 472, State House
Boston, MA 02133-1053
P: (617) 722-2013
F: (617) 722-2239
From: amm5061
Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2016 5:29 PM
To: Sannicandro, Tom - Rep. (HOU)
Subject: RE: AG Healey's Unconstitutional Assault Weapons Announcement
Dear Representative Sannicandro,
I have been a resident of Ashland, MA, and registered Massachusetts voter for the past 5 years. I am writing to you this evening to express my severe displeasure over the unconstitutional and questionably legal announcement by Attorney General Maura Healey this morning. AG Healey's decision to reinterpret a long held stature concerning Assault Weapons flies in the face of over 20 years of precedent.
This decision is a clear assault on the civil liberties of citizens of the Commonwealth and a blatant overstepping of her delegated authority. Such a ban should come from, and rightfully only can come from proper legislation from the Massachusetts state house and senate, and then approved by the Governor. The Attorney General should not be allowed to unilaterally reinterpret laws to suit her own agenda.
Furthermore, her actions have made tens of thousands of previously legal gun owners into felons, simply because they own one of these now prohibited weapons. This sets up a highly dangerous situation whereby law abiding citizens are now subject to arrest and prosecution at any time.
In addition, AG Healey's obviously politically-motivated and intentionally broad directive would appear to outlaw almost all semiautomatic rifles and shotguns of any manufacture, not simply AR- and AK-style "Assault Weapons."
These egregious actions demand a swift response, and I plead with you, Representative Sannicandro, to do the right thing and help restore our civil liberties by working toward rescinding AG Healey's unlawful directive.
Most respectfully,
amm5061