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Riding Shotgun With Charlie #261 Dan Hagan, Esq. Mass Gun Lawyer
I've been running into Dan Hagan at several of the pro-gun events in Massachusetts. At one event, we talked a bit more. Then I found out how many cases he was doing in the Western Mass and the impact he's had on them. So it was time to reach out and have him on the show. We met at a local gun store and took it from there.
Like many people, Dan was into firearms when he was a kid and teenager. His father was a police officer. I found out one of his neighbors was involved with one of the most tragic firearm accidents in Massachusetts. A young boy was at a machine gun shoot and using an Uzi. The boy lost control and ended up taking a fatal round under the chin.
At law school, the Second Amendment doesn't get covered well or much. He says "guns were the third rail of law". I've heard this from other attorneys I've had on the show. For this thesis, he talked about the Second Amendment.
Around the time of Heller (2008), Dan was working a corporate lawyer job. But decided it was time to fill the niche for gun owners in the Bay State. His practice deals with both criminal law and Second Amendment issues.
Dan does open up about some of the bigger cases he's had. There was the Kyle Culotta case. Where Culotta and his fiance, Sarande (RSWC #238), were working their way from Arizona to New Hampshire. While Door Dashing for money, they were pulled over. The car was impounded due to expired registration. When he removed his lawfully owned Arizona firearms, he was now in possession of them in Massachusetts. He ended up going to jail for 4 months on a trumped up "dangerousness" charge as well as a few others. Dan helped get some charges dismissed. Some are still pending now. Although there are projections in the Mass gun laws, they don't help you on the front end of the process. Only once you get to court can the attorneys bring up the laws.
The conversation also leads us into discussing Chapter 135, which was passed in 2024. It's been a disaster for citizens and instructors. There's been a whole movement here to repeal the entire law, which is on the ballot in Nov 2026. The law makes it more difficult for people to get a license to carry. It changes definitions and makes it confusing to the people, but also for law enforcement and lawyers. Even the law makers who signed it can't explain it, because the 130+ page bill was passed in less than 24 hours.
Some other cases that have been happening are one that includes a woman driving from Connecticut to Vermont, passing through Mass, gets into a car accident. At the hospital, she's charged with illegal possession as she is now "visiting" the state… in the hospital. Another where a woman was driving from one of the Carolinas to New Hampshire, gets lost in central Mass, gets pulled over, tells the police she has a firearm. Chapter 135 says its lawful to pass through the state, but they want her to plead guilty to a misdemeanor even though the new law says what she's doing is legal.
A big case he had earlier this year involved a self defense shooting where the intended victim shot an innocent bystander. This was the first time in Mass where someone shot a person who wasn't the intended target and didn't get a murder charge. This was really groundbreaking.
It's great to talk with people like Dan. Hearing him talk about inner city young people who live in dangerous areas and want to protect themselves from local gang violence made me realize that some people get put into unsafe situations and want to get out of them. But when the system tries them for illegal possession with zero history of crime or violence, it leaves them with no other choice than to keep pursuing that lifestyle.
This was a really good conversation! There's lots of great points he makes. He's working on cases that are shaping the future of the Second Amendment where nearly everything here is an uphill battle. I'm glad he's on our side.
Favorite quotes: "Guns are like the third rail of law…There's an Amendment there for those who don't like guns." "They didn't get the $100 gun license, but they would otherwise qualify if they did." "Even if you have a pre-94 magazine…carrying that now, for anybody, is illegal." "You manufacture people to be criminals in the context."
Mass Gun Lawyer https://www.massgunlawyer.com/
Dan On Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dan.hagan.758
Second Amendment Foundation https://secure.anedot.com/saf/donate?sc=RidingShotgun
Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms https://www.ccrkba.org/
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