Massachusetts Mayors Rally Around AG's 'Copycat' Assault Weapons Action

Mayors from around Massachusetts are rallying to the cause of Attorney General Maura Healey, who last month issued a controversial enforcement notice on the state's assault weapons ban.

Mayors from 19 cities and towns have signed onto a letter in support of Healey's action. The letter reads:

As mayors from across Massachusetts, the safety and well-being of our residents and neighborhoods is our top priority. In the wake of the mass shooting at Orlando’s Pulse nightclub and incidents of violence against civilians and law enforcement in cities across the country, our positions demand that we speak out. We have called again and again for national solutions to gun violence, to increase mental health funding, and to end the sale of military-style weapons to civilians, because our cities are not war zones. But we are as frustrated as our neighbors with inaction and empty words. Much more is demanded of those empowered to address any part of this crisis.

For this reason, we have come together to express our strong support for Attorney General Maura Healey’s recently announced effort to enforce the state’s ban on the sale of assault weapons. We back her push to end the sale of copycat assault weapons and to give our residents what the attorney general calls “the full protection” of our state laws.

The Commonwealth has had an assault weapons ban on the books for a long time. But for the law to work, it should be more than words on a page, it should actually ban assault weapons. We know that some residents oppose any restrictions on guns. Many more people, including gun owners, believe that sensible limits make our streets, our schools, our parks, and our workplaces that much safer. We wholeheartedly agree and offer the Attorney General our full support.

Healey faces a potential court challenge to her office's July decision to close what she has called a "loophole" in the state's longstanding ban on assault weapons – treating certain modified guns as "copycat" or "duplicate" weapons also banned under existing state law.

The mayors' support comes after the governor and members of his administration questioned Healey's enforcement action, and at least one trade association mulls litigation.

Mayors from the following cities and towns have signed the letter of endorsement so far: Boston, Brockton, Cambridge, Everett, Holyoke, Lawrence, Lowell, Medford, New Bedford, Newburyport, Newton, North Adams, Northampton, Peabody, Pittsfield, Salem, Somerville, Woburn, Worcester.

Read more from Patch:

• Gun Association Plans Legal Action on Mass. AG's Assault Weapons Enforcement
• Protesters of Massachusetts Assault Weapons Crackdown Take to Beacon Hill
• Governor Calls for Clarity in Assault Weapons Ban Enforcement
• Mass. AG Cracks Down on Assault Weapons Ban 'Loophole'
• Gun Enthusiasts Up in Arms Over AG's 'Copycat' Assault Weapons Ban

>> Photo via Maura Healey Twitter