Current:Home > Contact-usWhat are Maine's gun laws?-InfoLens
What are Maine's gun laws?
View Date:2024-12-23 16:58:28
Washington — At least 18 people were killed and 13 were injured in mass shootings at a bowling alley and restaurant in Lewiston, Maine, on Wednesday, and law enforcement is continuing to search for the suspected gunman.
The shooting has led to renewed calls from President Biden for Congress to pass legislation banning semi-automatic weapons and high-capacity magazines, and enact universal background checks, though such measures are unlikely to be considered by the GOP-led House.
Still, Mr. Biden has repeatedly implored the divided Congress to act and on Thursday, he declared "this is the very least we owe every American who now bears the scars — physical and mental — of this latest attack."
In Maine, state lawmakers considered several measures this year that would have strengthened the state's gun laws, though unsuccessfully.
The Maine House approved in June a measure that would have tightened background checks for private gun sales, but the proposal failed in the state Senate. The state House this summer also passed a bill that would have banned bump stocks and other rapid-fire modification devices, but it, too, was rejected by the Maine Senate.
Legislation that would've imposed a 72-hour waiting period after a gun sale was rejected by both chambers of the Maine legislature.
A Maine law enacted in 2015 allows people who are at least 21 years old to carry a concealed handgun without a permit. Those between the ages of 18 and 20 are required to have a permit to carry concealed, according to state law.
But it remains illegal to have a gun in public places including courthouses, state parks, Acadia National Park, schools, federal buildings and the state capitol area in Augusta, and on private property where it's barred by the owner. Guns are also prohibited in "establishments licensed for on-premises consumption of liquor" if the establishment has signs posted that bar or limit firearms, which patrons are likely to see, or if a patron has a gun while intoxicated.
People who have been involuntarily committed to a hospital because they were found to be a danger to themselves or others are prohibited from having firearms without a permit under Maine law, as are those who have been convicted of a crime punishable by at least a year in prison. For gun sellers that are not licensed dealers, there is no law requiring a background check on the buyer of a firearm.
Maine allows for the purchase of certain assault-style weapons and high-capacity magazines, and does not have on the books an extreme-risk protection order law. Also known as red-flag laws, the measures allow law enforcement or family members to seek an order from a judge to temporarily restrict a person's access to guns if they're deemed to be a risk to themselves or others.
- In:
- Gun Laws
- Maine
veryGood! (7)
Related
- Deion Sanders says he would prevent Shedeur Sanders from going to wrong team in NFL draft
- Iowa man wins scratch-off lottery game, plays again, and then scores $300,000
- Families of 3 killed in Jacksonville Dollar General shooting sue store, gunman's family
- Prosecutor seeks terror-linked charge for man accused of killing tourist near Eiffel Tower
- Apologetic rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine gets 45 days in prison for probation violations
- Taylor Swift Reveals Her Intense Workout Routine for the Eras Tour
- US finds both sides in Sudan conflict have committed atrocities in Darfur
- Biden’s campaign will not commit yet to participating in general election debates in 2024
- Quincy Jones' cause of death revealed: Reports
- In rare action against Israel, U.S. will deny visas to extremist West Bank settlers
Ranking
- 'I was in total shock': Woman wins $1 million after forgetting lotto ticket in her purse
- Erin Andrews Reveals What NFL WAGs Think About Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift's Romance
- Major foundation commits $500 million to diversify national monuments across US
- 'DWTS' crowns Xochitl Gomez, Val Chmerkovskiy winners of the Len Goodman Mirrorball trophy
- To Protect the Ozone Layer and Slow Global Warming, Fertilizers Must Be Deployed More Efficiently, UN Says
- Norman Lear, producer of TV’s ‘All in the Family’ and influential liberal advocate, has died at 101
- Massachusetts woman wins $25 million scratch-off game 17 years after winning $1 million
- EV tax credit for certain Tesla models may be smaller in 2024. Which models are at risk?
Recommendation
-
Florida man’s US charges upgraded to killing his estranged wife in Spain
-
The UK apologizes to families of 97 Liverpool soccer fans killed after a stadium crush 34 years ago
-
The Suite Life of Zack & Cody's Kim Rhodes Says Dylan Sprouse Refused to Say Fat Joke on Set
-
How to keep dust mites away naturally to help ease your allergies
-
New Yorkers vent their feelings over the election and the Knicks via subway tunnel sticky notes
-
Here are the 25 most-viewed articles on Wikipedia in 2023
-
Bodies of 5 university students found stuffed in a car in Mexico
-
Michael Oher demanded millions from Tuohys in 'menacing' text messages, per court documents