Hey, there! Log in / Register

Spending one night camping in the woods on your way from New Hamsphire to Michigan does not make you a Massachusetts resident, court rules

The Massachusetts Appeals Court today upheld a New Hampshire man's conviction for illegal gun possession, saying that his spending a night camping in the woods south of the border before walking down I-93 on his way to Michigan did not qualify him for the 60-day waiver of our gun-licensing requirements granted to new residents of the state.

James Paul found himself under arrest after a Massachusetts state trooper noticed him walking on the side of the interstate about six miles south of the New Hampshire line early on the morning of Aug. 5, 2015, stopped to tell him to get off the highway and then agreed to give him a lift to the gas station just past 495, where Paul said he'd be meeting a friend for a ride west, towards Michigan. According to the court's summary of the case:

The trooper asked the defendant if he had any weapons, to which the defendant replied in the affirmative, pointing to his backpack, stating that "his uniform" was in it and that he worked for Homeland Security. The trooper repeated his question, and the defendant "stated that there was a firearm in the bag." The defendant complied with the trooper's instruction to step back. The defendant directed the trooper to where in the backpack the firearm was located. The trooper located a Ruger SR9 semiautomatic pistol in its holster, loaded with five rounds of ammunition, and a second fully loaded magazine, and secured the weapon. Other items in the bag included an active New Hampshire license to carry a firearm, a New Hampshire driver's license, the defendant's passport, a water purification kit, and other items indicative of someone camping.

Paul's attorney tried to get the unlawful-possession charge dismissed, on the grounds that Paul had spent the night camping in the woods on the Massachusetts side of the state line, which therefore made him a "new resident" eligible for the 60-day licensing waiver. The judge, however, denied the request and denied the attorney's motion to instruct the jury on that as a possible reason to find Paul not guilty.

The judge noted that contrary to an earlier proffer by defense counsel, she was not aware of any evidence that the defendant was "moving into the Commonwealth" or that he had any plans to remain in Massachusetts. Defense counsel argued that the jury could draw a reasonable inference that at the time of the defendant's arrest he was a resident of Massachusetts because he was then in Massachusetts, and they could infer that the defendant had spent the previous night camping in Massachusetts which would satisfy the statutory requirement that one had to be "moving into the Commonwealth" to come within the [licensing] exemption.

After the jury found Paul guilty, he appealed.

In its ruling today, the appeals court agreed with the trial judge. After first considering just what the legislature meant by the term "new resident," the court concluded that that was something Paul was not:

In the present case, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the defendant, he was in Massachusetts to meet a friend at a gas station and had a plan to move on to Michigan. There was no evidence that the defendant intended to stay in Massachusetts for any longer than necessary to meet his friend before continuing his travels to other States; thus, there is no basis in the evidence to support an inference that he was "a new resident moving into the commonwealth." The judge, therefore, was correct in denying the defendant's request for an instruction on the [licensing] exemption.

In March, the Supreme Judicial Court upheld another exemption to the licensing law that might have worked in Paul's favor: That a resident of one state with a gun permit there can traverse Massachusetts on his way to another state without needing a Massachusetts gun permit - at least as long as the gun is unloaded. That case also involved a New Hampshire man, but one who claimed he was exempt from licensing under that exemption, only the court ruled he had actually become a Massachusetts resident.

The appeals court did agree with Paul that a separate conviction, of possession of a loaded weapon, should be dismissed, because the judge failed to tell jurors that to convict on that charge, they needed to be convinced prosecutors had proved Paul knew his gun was loaded. However, that does not change the 18-month jail sentence he got on the charge of unlawful possession of a firearm.

Topics: 
AttachmentSize
PDF icon Complete Paul ruling90.18 KB


Ad:


Like the job UHub is doing? Consider a contribution. Thanks!

Comments

Why didn't the court apply the "just passing through" exemption once they determined he wasn't a resident because he was just passing through?

up
Voting closed 0

Doesn't this ruling violate the federal FOPA for a peaceable journey?

up
Voting closed 0

Perhaps (and see the link towards the bottom of the story about a case that did involve the right to transit the state with a gun), but his lawyer didn't make that argument. Instead, the issue was whether he was exempt under the section of state law that provides for a 60-day exemption for "new residents."

up
Voting closed 0

One can travel through Massachusetts with firearms if they are unloaded and enclosed in a container. This man had a loaded gun not in a container.

https://law.justia.com/cases/massachusetts/court-of-appeals/1980/10-mass...

The actual statute:

https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXX/Chapter140/Sect...

Good luck trying to figure out MA gun laws in general.

up
Voting closed 0

Doesn't this ruling violate the federal FOPA for a peaceable journey?

The gun was loaded.

On another note, I can only find FOPA cases for cars and airplanes. It may hold up for pedestrians, but I can see a beef over it.

up
Voting closed 0

Yeah, the unloaded part is important. I've added that to my description of the other case.

up
Voting closed 0

mitt romney?

up
Voting closed 0

"The appeals court did agree with Paul that a separate conviction, of possession of a loaded weapon, should be dismissed, because the judge failed to tell jurors that to convict on that charge, they needed to be convinced prosecutors had proved Paul knew his gun was loaded."

We don't hold people responsible for what happens with their guns.

up
Voting closed 0

I agree. Except in the obscure case that he could prove someone loaded the gun without his knowledge, despite him taking precautions to secure it (like someone breaking into where it was).

up
Voting closed 0

Here is a little sonnet for French language students:

Moralite: Pour eviter de recevoir dix huit mois de prison quand on est dans le Massachusetts, il ne faut pas faire de faux pas avec son FOPA.

up
Voting closed 0