In 1998, Massachusetts passed what was hailed as the toughest gun control legislation in the country. Among other stringencies, it banned semiautomatic "assault" weapons, imposed strict new licensing rules, prohibited anyone convicted of a violent crime or drug trafficking from ever carrying or owning a gun, and enacted severe penalties for storing guns unlocked.
"Today, Massachusetts leads the way in cracking down on gun violence," said Republican Governor Paul Cellucci as he signed the bill into law. "It will save lives and help fight crime in our communities." Scott Harshbarger, the state's Democratic attorney general, agreed: "This vote is a victory for common sense and for the protection of our children and our neighborhoods." One of the state's leading anti gun activists, John Rosenthal of Stop Handgun Violence, joined the applause. "The new gun law," he predicted, "will certainly prevent future gun violence and countless grief."
It didn't.
Read the article: The Boston Globe
Crime soared with Massachusetts gun law
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
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Anti-gun lawmakers and their gun control allies exploit menacing language to bolster their arguments against lawful arms: ordinary semi-automatic rifles and pistols become “weapons of war” and “assault weapons;” “large capacity magazines” actually refers to ...
Monday, June 1, 2026
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Last October, a judge in the Circuit Court for the City of Richmond ruled in the case Raul Wilson, Wyatt Lowman, Virginia Citizens Defense League, Gun Owners of America, Inc, and Gun Owners Foundation v. ...
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While Virginia’s bans on “assault firearms” and magazines capable of holding more than 15 rounds was signed into law on May 14, and is scheduled to go into effect on July 1, it remains to be seen ...
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On Wednesday, May 27, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed S.9005C, which “enacts into law major components” of the state’s public protection and general government budget.
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