BOSTON (AP) - Gun rights advocates are calling on Massachusetts lawmakers to approve a bill that would treat anyone who brandishes a fake gun during a violent crime the same as someone with an actual weapon.
The head of the Gun Owners’ Action League said the state needs the law given what the group called a recent rise in police-involved shootings of suspects with fake weapons.
On Sunday prosecutors said a Hingham police officer shot a man who pointed what looked like a handgun at him. The weapon was a pellet gun.
GOAL Executive Director Jim Wallace said anyone who uses a fake gun in a crime should be treated as if they had a real gun.
Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz says state police are investigating the shooting. The man who was shot faces assault charges.
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