In the wake of yet another mass shooting tragedy, an armed citizen’s heroic instinct ran smack dab into Massachusetts’ byzantine gun laws, exposing how restrictive permitting schemes can turn potential heroes into spectators when seconds matter most. The story line itself is familiar—an off-duty security guard or ordinary citizen packing lawfully elsewhere arrives at the scene ready to intervene—but under Bay State rules an non-resident permit simply does not fly, non-resident permits are rare