BY: Allison Martinez
Swampscott, Massachusetts Selectman Barry Greenfield would like to give police the authority to inspect gun safety at people’s homes. This would involve going door to door to each of the 600 registered gun owners to make sure they are in compliance with the law. State law requires Massachusetts gun owners to keep their firearms locked away or rendered inoperable. Presumably, these inspections would be done to verify that the guns were in compliance.
It may sound crazy, but this is a local government that is known for its heavy handed approach to its citizen’s rights. In 2011 Swampscott required parents to attend a “voluntary” meeting on teen drug use and were not allowed to talk during the entire meeting. They threatened to arrest people who attempted to speak. They were forced to sign a paper on the schools tobacco, alcohol, and substance abuse before they left the building. It was quite an infringement on the civil liberties of parents.
So if they will do that to parents at a school board meeting, one wonders what might happen during a door to door gun inspection. As the Swampscott Patch noted,
The selectman said state law requires Massachusetts gun owners to keep their firearms locked away or rendered inoperable.The problem, he said, is that police do not have the authority, granted by a local ordinance, to enforce the law and inspect the safeguarding of guns at the homes of the 600 registered gun owners in town.The selectman said he has spoken with Swampscott Police Chief Ron Madigan about this.“We need the ability to enforce the state law,” the selectman said.
It is unclear why a new local law is needed to enforce a state law. Nevertheless, there could be some problems with the door to door gun inspection approach. A similar law was proposed in the state ofWashington in February of this year. Fortunately, someone had the bright idea to read the Constitution to see if these door to door inspections were consistent. Apparently, the bill was pulled after the Bill of Rights was consulted.
Selectman Glenn Kessler made the suggestion that the parties should all sit down and talk. Kessler suggested that some civil liberties might be at stake. Blogger Michael Graham noted that things don’t always turn out so well at the ballot box for anti-gun advocates even in Massachusetts. He reminds his readers of former Selectman Robert Jefferies who took a tough anti-gun stance in Westford, MA before voters fired him.
Stay vigilant and diligent folks. The anti-gun kooks are still trying every trick in the book to end Second Amendment rights.
