There was some interesting logic in this one:
- Under MGL, a restraining order is issued only for a temporary basis until the person has a chance for a hearing. If the court finds the person is a threat the restraining order may be extended. It is very rare for a court to risk its reputation on wrongly refusing a RO, so the subject is almost totally helpless in court.
- Under MGL the fact that the TRO was extended means the court found the person to be a threat.
So, the chief's position was "Even though the RO has expired with no violation, you have a history of having been found by a court to present a threat of violence, and the expiration of the RO does not remove that finding from your record, hence no LTC for you".
you've never been a victim of the weaponization of a 209A in a divorce proceeding
I know people who have
"He yelled at me I'm afraid of him" is enough to get you on the wrong side of a 209A that is then converted to a 208 order in the divorce decree.
That then becomes a LIFETIME ban on gun ownership, or until the other party dies.
And because it is considered a "domestic" you are now subject to Lautenberg and the iirc 15 year potential prison sentence for so much as holding a gun or a bullet.
Your LTC gets yanked for almost anything that is not a felony and you can still get a FID at some point, you can still hop up to NH and go shooting with a friend.
You could also carry in a Constitutional Carry state in many cases
I am told they don't automatically hand out RO's like they used to, but probably over 90% of the applications are granted.
Especially if a "victim advocate" is involved and telling the applicant exactly what key words to use that will force a Judge to issue the order.
And why do Judges just issue them carte blanche?
Because they don't want to risk Channel 7 on their doorstep asking why they didn't save that poor defenseless woman from her homicidal ex
In the weeks before Migdalia Perez’s death, she had grown increasingly worried and fearful, to the point where she hardly left her apartment, her family told 25 Investigates exclusively.
www.boston25news.com
"This was an unnecessary and unfortunate escalation of what appears to be a long-term history of domestic violence," police said
www.cbsnews.com
"yes or no, have you stopped beating your wife"