Where Can You Carry/Not-Carry Concealed in MA?

[Adam_MA]

hehehe
"Ok son, be on your way.... and oh yea fix that broken tail light"
"What broken tail light sir"?
**SMASH**

 

[Danguard Ace]

Point to ponder...

If someone walks in your open door, grabs your TV and walks away with it making no forced entry, and no threat to you, by law, you may not touch that person. In the liberal state of Massachusetts (and I suspect in many other states as well) if you attack the thief, you will be guilty of assault and battery. You may not defend property with force.

My freshman year college roommate actually experienced this. He was staying at this aunt's place in Elizabeth, NJ (neighboring Newark) a week before registration at school. Being a southern boy from SC and the son of a Marine drill sargeant, he was dumbfounded by what he saw at the projects across the street. People were running around in house shoes (slippers?) outdoors, he saw an unattended toddler in diapers wandering on the front lawn and he witnessed shady dealings between people at the projects. His first night at his aunt's place was unnerving. He was especially concerned since he was sleeping on the couch not fifteen feet from the front door, which faced the projects. During the next couple days, he stayed indoors because he was afraid to walk down the street. And he was no small guy either, 6' at 290 lbs. So just as the week at his aunt's house was winding down without any incidences, he started to relax. Well one night he's abruptly awakened by pounding at the front door. As he jumps up from the couch (I've seen him do it from a sound sleep in the dorm room - scared the sh!t out of me everytime ), the front door busts open and a large woman on crack makes a b-line for the tv in the living room. He's standing there too shocked to panic, as his uncle and cousin come barreling down the stairs. They proceed to beat the sh!t out of this woman. My roommate then joins in! Ten seconds later they haul this woman outside and dump her on the front lawn of the projects across the street. Back in the house they go as the uncle says he's getting tired of this sh!t.

During the first semester, I got to visit the aunt's house. She offered the living room for the night after we had dinner, so that we didn't have to travel back to the campus late that evening. We both opted to take the bus through Newark instead.

Paul

 

[Adam_MA]

Funny story!
And welcome to the forum.

Adam

 

[Garys]

When I first asked the question in MA it was very obscure!

Other than big cities, there aren't many places where this is applicable, so many LEOs aren't aware of it.

This law has been on the books since the late 1970s. It will come as no surprise to anyone that MA was the LAST state in the union to pass Right on Red legislation and only did it when threatened with the loss of federal highway funds. RoR was passed as a way to decrease gas consumption and LoR was part of the package. LoR only applies at the intersection of two one way streets, which is why you don't see it outside of urban areas all that much. Boston has a lot of the intersections like that, Brockton only has a few that I can think of.

As to cops not knowing the traffic laws, it's true. All too often I hear Boston officers calling and asking if anyone knows the chapter, section, and fine for common violations.

Then again, until the law was changed to split traffic fines 50-50 between the state and municipality, Boston officers hardly ever enforced traffic laws.

Gary

 

[Danguard Ace]

Thanks Adam, it's good to be here.

Paul