By Lee Williams
SAF Investigative Journalism Project
The Ft. Devens Rifle & Pistol Club, Inc., is growing and it’s well deserved. The small gun club took on the United States Army over range access and won after a lengthy legal fight.
This week, several club members returned to the ranges of Fort Devens for the first time in nearly five years.
There have been some changes which the club’s lawyers fought hard for during several pitched legal battles.
The club must now pay only $16.98 per range outing—that’s the club’s total cost, not an individual fee.
If members want to shoot at plastic “Ivan” torso targets on automated ranges, the Club will pay $18.61.
“That’s quite a bit less than the $250-per-range-outing Fort Devens tried to charge us, which the federal court knocked out,” said club treasurer, James Gettens, an attorney and Iraq War veteran.
The club can use two rifle ranges per month, but it gave up the right to shoot handguns at the Fort. However, most members belong to other ranges where they shoot handguns. They come to the Fort for the rifle ranges.
Another new rule requires the club’s Range Safety Officers to complete NRA’s RSO training, even though many are already NRA certified. This is a major change. For years, Fort Devens range officials belittled NRA training.
Also, the Club is no longer billed $140-per-day for “Porta-Johns” on the ranges, which cost the base only $2.29 per day. In fact, the Porta-Johns are no longer even mentioned by range officials.
History
The gun club held regular shoots at the large military base for decades.
The club first filed suit in August 2022. The club won the lawsuit March 20, 2025. The Fort had 60 days to appeal the court order but allowed it to expire without filing any appeal.
Club members showed up to shoot on May 13, 2025, but officials wouldn’t allow them access. The club had been told they would shoot handguns, so all of the members brought handguns. However. when they arrived at the base, they were told they had been reassigned to a rifle range without any notice.
As part of their initial legal response, the gun club filed a motion for an order of contempt against Fort officials, which scared base leaders.
“Apparently, the Fort would have just strung us along indefinitely had we not filed the motion for contempt,” Gettens said Wednesday.
Two months ago, the gun club even sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Peter Hegseth, notifying him of the five-year history of problems that the gun club has had with Fort officials. The letter was written by Gettens.
Gettens notified Hegseth that Fort Devens still wasn’t allowing access, despite its legal loss.
“That dishonesty and obstructionism forced the Club to file its Motion for a Finding and Order of Contempt, with supporting documents,” Gettens told the Defense Secretary in his letter.
Copies of the letter were also sent to LTG Omar J. Jones, IV, the three-star general in charge of U.S. Army Installation Management Command, Stephen Miller, Esq., the White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy, the Second Amendment Foundation and the National Rifle Association.
Gettens wants other private gun clubs to know they too can shoot at active-duty, Reserve or National Guard military bases, nationwide.
“A federal statute provides that civilians can use any military rifle range constructed with congressionally approved funds,” Gettens said. “However, civilian gun clubs invoking this statute can expect to run into resistance. Our lawsuit is the one and only legal action applying that statute, so far.”
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