Academic

WELL, IT IS: Massachusetts Supreme Court Calls Illegal Gun Possession a ?Victimless Crime.? ?In a ?

By Glenn Reynolds

WELL, IT IS: Massachusetts Supreme Court Calls Illegal Gun Possession a “Victimless Crime.” “In a 4-to-1 ruling, the state’s highest court rejected the law enforcement strategy of Bristol District Attorney C. Samuel Sutter to cut down on gun violence by seeking pretrial detention for every person charged with illegal gun possession in his jurisdiction, which includes New Bedford.”

From the opinion: “That a person possesses a firearm without a valid license does not itself pose a substantial risk that physical force against another may result. Rather, it is the unlawful use of a firearm that involves a substantial risk that physical force against another may result.” I think this may be a penumbral result of Heller, though maybe not.

I’ll be on Michael Graham’s show in Boston talking about this at 9:25.

Full post as published by Instapundit.com on May 05, 2009 (boomark / email).