Connecticut: Three Egregious Anti-Gun Bills to be Heard in Judiciary Committee This Week

Wednesday, March 11, at 10:30 a.m. in Room 2E of the LOB, the Judiciary Committee will hold a public hearing on three anti-gun bills including Senate Bill 650, House Bill 6848 and House Bill 6962.  Your active help is needed to defeat these egregious bills!

Sponsored by “F-rated” Senator Martin Looney (D-11), Senate Bill 650 would allow doctors and family members, including even distant relatives, ex-husbands or ex-wives, to strip you of your gun rights without due process of law.  This legislation would require a sworn police officer to serve all temporary restraining orders when the applicant indicates on the application that the respondent has access to a firearm or ammunition, or holds a valid state-issued firearm or ammunition permit or eligibility certificate, in order to immediately take “temporary” possession of all legally-owned firearms, ammunition and permits.  Current law already provides a mechanism for committing dangerous persons involuntarily in an emergency situation, which already results in the committed person being prohibited from possessing firearms. Furthermore, Connecticut law already provides for “imminent risk warrants” to be issued, allowing law enforcement to seize firearms and ammunition when probable cause exists to warrant such necessary action.  This bill takes unnecessary steps to blatantly circumvent your rights.

It's important for gun owners to have the opportunity to put up their own defense before losing their Second Amendment rights.  This bill's low evidentiary standards and lack of a mechanism for individuals to present their own defense before being deprived of their constitutional rights is unacceptable.

Governor Dan Malloy’s bill, HB 6848, similarly seeks to confiscate legally-acquired firearms and ammunition without due process of the law.  This bill would give those served with a restraining or protective order 24 hours to transfer all firearms and ammunition to a federally licensed firearms dealer (FFL) or surrender them to the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Protection.  HB 6848 does not provide a way for these rights or possessions to be restored.

Sponsored by the Judiciary Committee, House Bill 6962, or the “Burglar Protection Act,” would impose liability and penalties on firearm owners that do not lock up their unloaded firearms to prevent any person (not only minors) from potentially accessing the firearm.  Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicate that nationally since 1975, the annual number of firearm accident deaths among children ages 0-14 has declined by 87 percent, even as population, the number of gun owners and the number of guns owned have risen substantially.  Their reports also indicate that children are more likely to suffocate (27%), drown (17%), be accidentally poisoned (2.2%), or perish from an accidental fall (1.6%) and are as likely to die in a non-traffic bicycle and tricycle accident (1.5%) as they are in a firearm accident (1.5%).

It is already law in Connecticut that loaded firearms within close proximity to minors must be safely secured.  This proposal has little to do with making it safer for children and only impedes your right to self-defense.  HB 6962 is a gross overreach of governmental power into your private lives and homes.  At the end of the day, it comes down to the fact that all households are different and have different needs.  This bill would expand the current law to encompass every home, not only those with young children residing in them, and apply to unloaded firearms that pose no threat to anyone.  This one-size fits all approach is a solution to a non-existent problem and is both over-reaching and not based on fact.

It is CRITICAL that you IMMEDIATELY use the links provided below to contact members of the Judiciary Committee and urge them to oppose SB 650, HB 6848 and HB 6962.  Please also consider submitting testimony to the Committee by clicking here.  

Judiciary Committee:

Senator Eric Coleman (D-2), Co-Chair

Representative William Tong (D-147), Co-Chair

Senator Paul Doyle (D-9), Vice Chair

Representative Daniel Fox (D-148), Vice Chair

Senator John Kissel (R-7), Ranking Member

Representative Rosa Rebimbas (R-70), Ranking Member

Representative Al Adinolfi (R-103)

Representative William Aman (R-14)

Representative Angel Arce (D-4)

Representative David Baram (D-15)

Representative Jeffrey Berger (D-73)

Senator Toni Boucher (R-26)

Representative Cecilia Buck-Taylor (R-67)

Senator Beth Bye (D-5)

Representative Vincent Candelora (R-86)

Representative Christie Carpino (R-32)

Representative Jeff Currey (D-11)

Representative Patricia Dillon (D-92)

Representative Doug Dubitsky (R-47)

Senator Mae Flexer (D-29)

Representative Mary Fritz (D-90)

Senator Terry Gerratana (D-6)

Representative Bob Godfrey (D-110)

Representative Minnie Gonzalez (D-3)

Representative Stephen Harding (R-107)

Representative Ernest Hewett (D-39)

Representative David Labriola (R-131)

Representative Roland Lemar (D-96)

Senator Art Linares (R-33)

Representative Ben McGorty (R-122)

Senator Michael McLachlan (R-24)

Representative Bruce Morris (D-140)

Representative Tom O’Dea (R-125)

Representative Arthur O’Neill (R-69)

Representative Robyn Porter (D-94)

Representative Emmett Riley (D-46)

Representative Robert Sampson (R-80)

Representative Joseph Serra (D-33)

Representative John Shaban (R-135)

Representative Caroline Simmons (D-144)

Representative Richard Smith (R-108)

Representative Steven Stafstrom (D-129)

Representative Joe Verrengia (D-20)

Representative Toni Walker (D-93)

Senator Gary Winfield (D-10)