The
legislature’s enactment of Ch. 180 is only part of the challenge to
gun-ownership rights in Massachusetts. In addition to the law,
regulations have also been decreed by the Attorney General.
Former
Attorney General Scott Harshbarger decided to “develop a strategy to go
after the gun industry” (his words, in a memo found by GOAL). He
decided to use the state “consumer protection” law to attack gun
manufacturers, gun dealers, and law-abiding citizens wishing to
purchase guns. He issued far-reaching regulations, with no action by
the state legislature, which current AG Tom Reilly says “have the force
of law.” Reilly boasts that 34 other states are looking to
Massachusetts’ new regulations as a model. (The gun industry is not
subject to federal consumer regulations.)