A Massachusetts town is requiring an essay from conceal-carry applicants explaining why they should have have a gun.
According to the Lowell Sun, City Manager Kevin Murphy said the new policy will help police scrutinize applicants more closely. “We’re no longer taking a cookie-cutter approach to issuing firearms licenses,” he told the paper.
Lowell Police spokesman Capt. Timothy Crowley told Fox, “If you want a license to carry a firearm unrestricted wherever you want and whenever you want, the superintendent is just looking for some documentation as to why,” Crowley said.
The town had a reputation for rejecting the permits and a Second Amendment group won a suit to change the policy. However, it is unclear if the new system will let the police reject applications just as easily.
In addition to writing a reason for having a concealed gun, applicants must take a gun safety course. Those strict regulations are uncommon in many states that allow concealed weapons.
The new regulations in Lowell, an hour from Boston, have come under fire from critics claiming it violates the Second Amendment.
The National Rifle Association highlighted the new rules in a tweet Monday.
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected].
