From GOAL's Executive Director Jim Wallace
With the fight we have been in for the past year, there has been a lot of conversation and discussions around the table here at GOAL about what happens next.
In the coming months, GOAL will start working on changing its footprint in the political world. While it is still very important to have a presence at the statehouse … working that building post-COVID is not the same as it was just a few years ago. So, here's a quick announcement that we are sure a lot of you have been waiting to hear for a long time.
GOAL is gearing up to start getting involved in the litigation process and bringing very specific things in front of federal courts should it be necessary.
With all the cases all around the country already being worked on … we may not be able to count on anyone else's help to proceed with our own cases. As I've said many times in the past, depending upon how this bill ends up … it could take several different federal cases before all of our concerns are addressed.
We know full well going into this that we stand very little chance in the First Circuit Federal Court System in our area. They have historically been very anti civil rights when it comes to the Second Amendment community. Perhaps our only hope is that we can get things to the Supreme Court before the makeup of the Court changes.
We are already in talks with a high-level law firm that is qualified to bring cases that far. The Supreme Court only works with lawyers that they have certified, so the average attorney cannot bring these cases through the federal system up to the highest court in the country.
During this year long fight against the State House, GOAL has not hammered our supporters for donations. It's just something we don't do unless we need the funds. Sure, we run a few raffles which is normal and a few other things, but we haven't constantly badgered people for money. We hope our supporters appreciate that. I have said often, that if we are in need of funds, we will ask.
However, as we move down this new litigation road we will need to raise substantial funds. A single case to the Supreme Court could take a few years and cost upwards of $1,000,000 in order to get through the entire federal system. That kind of money is no joke.
Also keep in mind that the last time GOAL, with great help from the NRA, brought a case to the High Court, they refused to hear it. That was the case against AG Maura Healey.
The other thing that we want people to keep in mind is as we proceed with these cases, we are going to be very specific on what we go after. There are already so many cases already way up in the pipeline dealing with a lot the current issues here in Massachusetts. it would be a waste of a huge amount of resources to duplicate those efforts.
For those particular issues already being brought, it is strategically wise to wait to see what their outcomes will be as they make their way back up to the Supreme Court. We are not going to waste your money on filing cases just to file cases to make it look good.
The other thing we want to let our supporters know is how we will move forward even beyond this particular situation. In the coming weeks and months, we will be putting out information on what types of cases we will look at and what we simply don't have the bandwidth to do.
For instance, we simply won't be able to take individual license cases. That is simply not feasible. What we will be looking to do is take on cases that will have a bigger impact for the majority of the Second Amendment community.
Aside from picking the specific issues to bring before federal courts there is also the process of choosing the right plaintiffs. Anyone who might be willing to be a plaintiff in these efforts has to be completely vetted by the attorneys. Those folks can't have anything questionable in their background that may lead to bad precedence in the courts.
So as GOAL moves forward and continues to grow, we hope we can count on your support to continue to fight everything that is being thrown at us and if it is necessary to bring that battle to federal court.
We are also trying to coordinate with other national groups to work with us in whatever may be necessary in the courts so that we are not duplicating efforts.
To our supporters and freedom fighters thank you for everything you have done. Thank you for all of your unwavering support. And just keep in mind this fight is not over!
