MA SJC: Gemme v. Holden

[Knuckle Dragger]

I'm surprised this case didn't show up here. I mentioned in briefly in the Caentano thread but since the SJC has taken upon themselves to totally screw us, I figured it deserved it's own thread.

Questions:

1. Whether the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms extends outside of one’s home, thus requiring the license to carry statute, G. L. c. 140, § 131, to be construed and applied in light of that constitutional protection;
2. Whether the “suitable person” standard in § 131 (d) is unconstitutionally vague and overbroad on its face and as applied to this defendant;
3. Whether the statute deprives applicants and licensees of procedural due process both before and after licenses are denied, suspended, or revoked.

Decision

"Presumptively lawful" prohibitions and regulations do not burden conduct protected by the Second Amendment. As such, they fall outside the scope of the Second Amendment and are not subject to heightened scrutiny. See Commonwealth v. McGowan, 464 Mass. 232, 239, 244 (2013). For these reasons, we conclude that the denial of a Class A license to carry a concealed firearm, or the revocation or suspension of a Class A license, falls outside the Second Amendment and is subject only to rational basis analysis, as a matter of substantive due process.

Basically the court has codified the state's position that there is no right to a license. Even though a license is required just to possess or purchase a handgun.