The pro-gun group Gun Owners of Maine is preparing to fight the state’s newly implemented three-day waiting period in court, but that fight is going to take money.
Back in April, anti-gun lawmakers in the Pine Tree State passed a measure requiring a 72-hour waiting period for gun purchasers before they can be transferred a gun they have purchased, even after passing the FBI’s federal background check. Passage took a barrage of procedural games, and then Gov. Janet Mills didn’t act upon the legislation, cowardly letting it become law without her signature.
Consideration of the law by the state legislature forced one major Maine employer to announce it would take its business to a different, more gun-friendly state if the measure was passed. Kittery Trading Post, the gun seller and outdoor sports retailer located by Interstate 95 in southern Maine, said it would move its firearms business across the border to New Hampshire if the waiting period took effect.
The 86-year-old business stated in a letter that the law would have “irreversible consequences” on its third-generation, family-owned gun and outdoor sports company.
“The 72-hour waiting period forces law-abiding customers to make two visits over three days to complete a legal firearm sale,” the trading post’s letter to a state gun-rights organization stated. “That means extra time, gas and sundries which further drives up the cost of the transaction for the consumer. We are a destination store in a tourist state and 55% of our visits are unique each year. We will be vigorously supporting the lawsuit against the State of Maine on this legislation. If this law is implemented, we will be forced to move our entire firearms business to New Hampshire.”
And New Hampshire officials were more than happy to welcome that eventuality. Brandon Pratt, a spokesperson for New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, told the Portsmouth Herald that the governor had reached out to ensure Kittery Trading Post ownership knows the business is welcome in New Hampshire.
“The governor spoke to the leadership team at Kittery Trading Post and made it clear that the Live Free or Die state would love to be an expanded home for the Kittery Trading Post,” Pratt said in a prepared statement. “He looks forward to working with them in the future to meet whatever needs they might have!”
Now, Gun Owners of Maine is asking for donations to help fund the lawsuit.
“We take this very seriously and will see it through to the end—but we need your help,” the group said in an update on its website. “We genuinely appreciate your support, and take your comments such as ‘Maine is counting on you’ to heart. We also know that the economy makes it difficult for many people to have anything extra left over at the end of the month, so when we receive comments of, ‘It’s not much but it’s all I have,’ we know this is something you believe in.”
Those interested in helping fund the lawsuit can contribute to the effort online by clicking here.
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