Bill Proposed To Address Recent Rash Of Gunfire Directed At Residences
WOBURN – Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan and several Middlesex County elected officials have announced the filing of proposed legislation to address a recent rash of gunfire directed at residences. “An Act To Prohibit Gunfire Directed At Dwelling Houses,” HD 990, has been filed for consideration during the 2015 legislative session.
“In the last year it has been alarming to see the increase in the number of incidents where guns are fired at homes,” said District Attorney Ryan. “The individuals doing this have complete disregard for where the bullets are going and give no thought to the fact that they could kill someone by repeatedly shooting up doors, windows, and the outside of buildings. This trend needs to be addressed legislatively so that those who direct gunfire at dwellings can be charged accordingly.”
Lead sponsor of the proposed bill is State Representative Rady Mom. "Every citizen deserves the right to be safe with their family in their own home,” Representative Mom stated. “This legislation strengthens the hand of law enforcement and the court system to show that these acts of violence will not be tolerated."
Co-sponsors of the proposed bill include Representatives James Arciero, David Nangle, Thomas Golden, and State Senator Eileen Donoghue. Donoghue says, “That one can feel safe and secure within the confines of the home is a sacred right which should consistently be reviewed and upheld. I am proud to support legislation which would codify and increase penalties for the crime of gunfire directed at dwelling houses. HD990will take meaningful steps to curtail violence across our communities, and I would like to thank Representative Rady Mom and District Attorney Marian Ryan for their leadership on this important issue.”
Representative Golden added, “Everyone should feel safe in their home, house, apartment, and dwelling. It is unsettling to know that there are individuals out in our communities who are so reckless and have no regard for any human being that may be in their crossfire. I applaud both District Attorney Marian Ryan and Representative Mom for their efforts to curb those that are extremely negligent in the discharging of a firearm. I look forward to working with Representative Mom in the House to see this legislation move forward.”
In Middlesex County, and in Lowell in particular, there have been an increasing number of incidents during the last year in which individuals have fired guns in “drive-by shooting” type of scenarios, resulting in bullets hitting street signs, trees, the outside of homes, and other objects. Due to this escalation of random gunfire, the proposed legislation was drafted and then filed. Currently, Chapter 265, “Crimes Against The Person,” only addresses gunfire inside a dwelling, in Section 18C.
The risks posed by gunfire directed at dwellings have been obvious for many years in Middlesex County. In one particular case, in which then District Attorney Ryan was assigned while an Assistant District Attorney in 1987, a woman in Medford was killed when an individual fired shots into the front door of the woman’s home. 20 year-old Jeanine Caldwell was murdered on January 18, 1987, when bullets were fired by an individual outside, passed through the front door of Caldwell’s home, and struck Caldwell as she was walking across a room to change the station on her television set.
“An Act To Prohibit Gunfire Directed At Dwelling Houses” proposes that Massachusetts Criminal Law Chapter 265, “Crimes Against The Person,” be amended by adding after Section 18C an additional section, Section 18D. The proposed section would state, “Whoever, being armed with a firearm, rifle, shotgun, sawed-off shotgun, machine gun, assault weapon, or other weapon capable of discharging a bullet or shot, discharges such weapon with intent to strike a dwelling house, and as a result does strike a dwelling house, shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for a term of not less than five years nor more than twenty years; provided, however, that whoever commits said offense after having been previously convicted of a felony or of a violent crime, as defined by Chapter 140, Section 121, shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for not less than ten years nor more than twenty years.
A sentence imposed under this section shall not be reduced nor suspended, nor shall any person convicted under this section be eligible for probation, parole, furlough or work release or receive any deduction from his sentence for good conduct until he shall have served the minimum term of such additional sentence; provided, however, that the commissioner of correction may, on the recommendation of the warden, superintendent or other person in charge of a correctional institution or the administrator of a county correctional institution, grant to such offender a temporary release in the custody of an officer of such institution for the following purposes only: (i) to attend the funeral of a spouse or next of kin; (ii) to visit a critically ill close relative or spouse; or (iii) to obtain emergency medical services unavailable at such institution. Prosecutions commenced under this section shall neither be continued without a finding nor placed on file. The provisions of section 87 of chapter 276 relative to the power of the court to place certain offenders on probation shall not apply to any person 17 years of age or over charged with a violation of this section.”