Free Daily Headlines :

  • COVID-19
  • Money
  • Election 2020
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Health
  • Justice
  • More
    • Environment
    • Economic Development
    • Gaming
    • Investigations
    • Social Services
    • TRANSPORTATION
  • Opinion
    • CT Viewpoints
    • CT Artpoints
DONATE
Reflecting Connecticut’s Reality.
    COVID-19
    Money
    Election 2020
    Politics
    Education
    Health
    Justice
    More
    Environment
    Economic Development
    Gaming
    Investigations
    Social Services
    TRANSPORTATION
    Opinion
    CT Viewpoints
    CT Artpoints

LET�S GET SOCIAL

Show your love for great stories and out standing journalism

Proposed change to law on carrying guns draws skepticism

  • Politics
  • by Kyle Constable
  • March 3, 2016
  • View as "Clean Read" "Exit Clean Read"
Chief State's Attorney Kevin Kane, left, and Farmington Police Chief Paul Melanson, right, testify.

Kyle Constable :: CTMirror.org

Chief State’s Attorney Kevin Kane, left, and Farmington Police Chief Paul Melanson, right, testify.

A number of legislators expressed skepticism Thursday about a bill that would allow law enforcement officers to ask to see an individual’s state-issued pistol permit without reasonable suspicion of a crime.

While some legislators voiced support for the bill, others raised concerns about its constitutionality and its practical effects during a Public Safety and Security Committee public hearing.

In addition to removing the requirement that there be “reasonable suspicion of a crime” before asking for a permit, an officer would no longer have to see a weapon to ask someone to show a permit.

Chief State’s Attorney Kevin Kane said in his testimony that legislators should expect to see a constitutional challenge if the bill is signed into law.

“There is a constitutional issue that could be raised and probably will be raised,” Kane said. “I believe (the bill) will be upheld.”

Sen. Ed Gomes, D-Bridgeport, expressed strong opposition to the legislation. He said he believed it could lead to officers subjecting individuals to searches without any reasonable suspicion of a crime.

“I want the protection of the law, but I don’t want the harassment of the law, either,” Gomes said. “The harassment of the law comes up when officers have the ability, and not only have the ability, they have the consent of us to say, ‘You look like a guy who looks like he has a weapon.’ He might have had a candy bar in his pocket, or whatever, but it looked like he had a weapon.”

Rep. Linda Orange, D-Colchester, said she was concerned it could lead to profiling.

Supporters of the legislation said that was not its intent. Farmington Police Chief Paul Melanson said the legislation is about identifying those who are illegally carrying a weapon, not targeting someone who may have “any bulge” in his or her clothing.

While Melanson said the language of the legislation is not final, Kane said he believes the current wording is “good,” though he said he is open to a better option.

Sen. Timothy Larson, D-East Hartford, the Senate co-chair of the Public Safety committee, said the legislation wouldn’t be “an intrusion of anyone’s rights.”

“I see this as sort of a recognition of a void in the current law and an opportunity to allow police officers to do a better job policing,” Larson said.

Rep. Kurt Vail, R-Stafford, made a comparison between existing laws about pulling over a driver and stopping an individual openly carrying a handgun – two actions he said are equally legal.

Vail asked Kane and Melanson a line of questions about whether someone could be pulled over by an officer simply for driving, much as this legislation, he said, would allow officers to ask to see a permit simply for carrying a handgun openly.

Kane said while an officer cannot pull someone over while driving within the limits of the law, every vehicle on the road is required to display a license plate that includes an identification number and proof of registration. The requirement to show an officer a permit upon request would function much the same way as a license plate, he said.

The legislation strikes a balance, Kane said, allowing officers to determine if an individual is carrying a weapon legally while avoiding any violation of an individual’s right to carry a firearm.

Sen. Tony Guglielmo, R-Stafford, left, and Sen. Timothy Larson, D-East Hartford, right.

Kyle Constable :: CTMirror.org

Sen. Tony Guglielmo, R-Stafford, left, and Sen. Timothy Larson, D-East Hartford, right.

Sen. Tony Guglielmo, R-Stafford, said he understood the concerns of officers and the difficulty of finding a balance, but that the threat of a constitutional challenge concerned him even more.

“I could see this being a case that could be tried – and there’s people who are willing to and have the money to push it forward,” Guglielmo said. “I think it’s problematic.”

Kane said concerns about the financial impact of litigation should not influence the final vote.

An NRA representative said he shared the many concerns expressed by the legislators, including the question of the proposal’s constitutionality.

Christopher Kopacki, the NRA’s state liaison for Connecticut, said the bill would violate a gun owner’s Second and Fourth Amendment rights.

“(The bill) infringes on the rights of those who choose to exercise their Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms while doing nothing to deter criminals,” Kopacki said. “Stopping, detaining or frisking a person is a seizure under the Fourth Amendment, no matter how brief.”

Kopacki also said the legislation could create a police environment where there is “constant harassment and abuse of law-abiding citizens,” especially in minority communities.

But some argued the danger of gun violence should outweigh other concerns. A representative for Connecticut Against Gun Violence urged legislators to pass the bill to protect innocent lives.

“Here’s the problem with the current law: Lives may be in danger if police have to wait,” said Marty Isaac, president of the organization’s board.

Isaac said the current standard of reasonable suspicion does not adequately protect the public, because police may hesitate to ask for permits because of what he said is ambiguity in the reasonable-suspicion threshold.

The committee introduced the legislation after a January incident during which officers repeatedly asked a man openly carrying his handgun at a Subway restaurant in Bridgeport to show his pistol permit. The man refused each time, saying the law requires the officers to have “reasonable suspicion of a crime.”

Melanson said carrying a pistol without a permit is a crime, but the current law does not provide any way to verify when an individual might be violating it. He said officers across the state came together to propose the change to the existing law.

Sign up for CT Mirror's free daily news summary.

Free to Read. Not Free to Produce.

The Connecticut Mirror is a nonprofit newsroom. 90% of our revenue comes from people like you. If you value our reporting please consider making a donation. You'll enjoy reading CT Mirror even more knowing you helped make it happen.

YES, I'LL DONATE TODAY

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kyle Constable Kyle was a general assignment reporter at the Connecticut Mirror. A former State Capitol beat writer for The Daily Campus, he graduated from UConn with a bachelor's degree in journalism in 2017. He previously worked for the Mirror as a freelance reporter and, before that, was the Mirror's 2016 summer reporting fellow and an intern during the 2016 legislative session.

SEE WHAT READERS SAID

RELATED STORIES
Legislative leaders support extension of Lamont’s emergency powers during COVID
by Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

The governor's emergency powers expire Feb. 9 unless he asks lawmakers for an extension within 72 hours of that date.

Sunday in Hartford: Massive show of police, not protesters
by Mark Pazniokas and Dave Altimari

Reporters outnumbered protesters. Cops outnumbered everyone. Sunday at the Connecticut Capitol was peaceful and well-documented.

‘No one took us seriously:’ Black cops warned about racist Capitol Police officers for years
by Joshua Kaplan and Joaquin Sapien | ProPublica

While many officers were filmed fighting off Capitol rioters, at least 12 others are under investigation for possibly assisting them.

Connecticut’s $90M lobbying industry has a new player: former Speaker Joe Aresimowicz
by Mark Pazniokas

Former House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz is becoming a lobbyist, but a revolving-door law limits him for a year.

Spiking tax revenue will wipe out state budget deficit, analysts say
by Keith M. Phaneuf

Projected state revenues skyrocketed by $1.7 billion Friday, positioning officials to balance the next state budget without tax hikes.

Support Our Work

Show your love for great stories and outstanding journalism.

$
Select One
  • Monthly
  • Yearly
  • Once
Artpoint painter
CT ViewpointsCT Artpoints
Opinion The change in leadership must not lead to complacency
by Jenna Van Donselaar

We are beginning 2021, and most people are far done with election talk. Sure, the polls are closed, and the results are in, and it is time to move on. I am weary from the hours I spent texting voters this fall, and I’d like to think all my efforts were worth it. But the work is far from done.

Opinion Treason is in the air
by David Holahan

Abraham Lincoln had been elected but had yet to assume the presidency when southern states started seceding from the Union in the months before his March 4, 1961 inauguration. Four others would follow that spring. American soldiers —like Robert E. Lee, who had taken an oath of loyalty to the nation that he had served since 1825— defected to the Confederacy. By joining the rebellion Lee and fellow travellers became, in effect, traitors.

Opinion Trump’s reaction to defeat further confirms urgency for school focus on social emotional skills 
by Sandra M. Chafouleas 

Imagine what would happen if a preschooler didn’t “use their words” when they got upset about sharing, instead stomping around yelling while adults simply observed in silence. Think about what the school climate would feel like if a student punched another during recess while others watched without seeking help.  Now consider the actions – and inactions – by Trump Jan. 6 as the electoral vote counts occurred at the U.S. Capitol.

Opinion Is Trump leading a cult?
by Elena Sada

My experience as a former cult member and researcher in the field of Social Sciences earned me the ability to identify narcissism and cultish tendencies. Furthermore, as a former  New York City resident who kept abreast of interviews with the city’s apparent “movers and shakers,” I often questioned Trump’s qualifications as a leader, let alone as national presidential leader.

Artwork Grand guidance
by Anne:Gogh

In a world of systemic oppression aimed towards those of darker skintones – representation matters. We are more than our equity elusive environments, more than numbers in a prison and much more than victims of societal dispositions. This piece depicts a melanated young man draped in a cape ascending high above multiple forms of oppression. […]

Artwork Shea
by Anthony Valentine

Shea is a story about race and social inequalities that plague America. It is a narrative that prompts the question, “Do you know what it’s like to wake up in new skin?”

Artwork The Declaration of Human Rights
by Andres Chaparro

Through my artwork I strive to create an example of ideas that reflect my desire to raise social consciousness, and cultural awareness. Jazz music is the catalyst to all my work, and plays a major influence in each piece of work.”

Artwork ‘A thing of beauty. Destroy it forever’
by Richard DiCarlo | Derby

During times like these it’s often fun to revisit something familiar and approach things with a different slant. I have been taking some Pop culture and Art masterpieces and applying the vintage 1960’s and 70’s classic figures (Fisher Price, little people) to the make an amusing pieces. Here is my homage to Fisher -Price, Yellow […]

Twitter Feed
A Twitter List by CTMirror

Engage

  • Reflections Tickets & Sponsorships
  • Events
  • Donate
  • Newsletter Sign-Up
  • Submit to Viewpoints
  • Submit to ArtPoints
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Commenting Guidelines
  • Legal Notices
  • Contact Us

About

  • About CT Mirror
  • Announcements
  • Board
  • Staff
  • Sponsors and Funders
  • Donors
  • Friends of CT Mirror
  • History
  • Financial
  • Policies
  • Strategic Plan

Opportunity

  • Advertising and Sponsorship
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Use of Photography
  • Work for Us

Go Deeper

  • Steady Habits Podcast
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Five Things

The Connecticut News Project, Inc. 1049 Asylum Avenue, Hartford, CT 06105. Phone: 860-218-6380

© Copyright 2021, The Connecticut News Project. All Rights Reserved. Website by Web Publisher PRO