Second Amendment supporters won another victory, this time in Connecticut. On Thursday, HB6200 was defeated. The bill would have required individuals who open carry handguns to present permits to law enforcement on demand. This was the second year that such a bill was stopped.
The bill never made it out of committee. In Connecticut, a resident isn’t allowed to carry a handgun outside of his home without a permit.
Here is the summation of the bill, from ct.gov:
AN ACT CONCERNING THE PRESENTATION OF A PERMIT TO CARRY A PISTOL OR REVOLVER.
To require individuals who openly carrying a pistol or revolver to produce their permit upon request of a law enforcement officer if the firearm is visible to such officer.
Observers might be surprised at the defeat of a bill that would have required people who openly carry handguns to present a permit to police, when such a permit is required for the legal, open carry of handguns in the state. Connecticut is perceived as less than gun friendly. It’s in the heart of the Northeast where Second Amendment rights are routinely infringed.
An important reason for the win was the existence of the Connecticut Citizens Defense League. CCDL was formed in 2009. From a small base, it has grown to over 27,000 members. That is a significant number for a state with 3.6 million residents. From CCDL.us:
“CCDL is pleased that HB6200 appears to be dead at this stage of the game. This bill was not only an unnecessary intrusion, it was advertised as something that is it was not.”
“The usual gun control proponents have for 2 years now failed to convince two different committees that there really is a need for what they’ve sought. We really appreciate the hard work of our members to help stop this bill. We could not have done this without the time and effort that they have dedicated.”
Another reason is the support of people concerned with civil rights and the abuse of police power. From ctnewsjunkie.com:
This year, it wasn’t only Second Amendment supporters who opposed the proposal. It was lawmakers from urban districts concerned about racial profiling by police.
“The bill was opposed by gun rights activists, as expected, but it was also opposed by some legislators from urban districts that unfortunately have a long history of racial profiling and inequalities,” Ron Pinciaro, executive director of Connecticut Against Gun Violence, said. “They were afraid this bill would be another reason to stop young men of color. We tried to find a way to address their concerns but were unable to reach such a compromise before tomorrow’s deadline.”
The Connecticut Civilian Defense League is gaining power in Connecticut. But the concern for the legal rights of all citizens is bringing more allies to these fights. The Florida Public Defender Association supported the reform of self defense law to allow for defensive display and warning shots. A number of Democrats have supported reform of knife laws, with the Freddy Grey incident as a reason why.
Second Amendment supporters are civil rights supporters. The NRA bills itself as the nations oldest civil rights organization. These alliances are the natural outgrowth of reforms that recognize the Second Amendment as a fundamental right in the Bill of Rights.
©2017 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.
“In Connecticut, a resident isn’t allowed to carry a handgun outside of his home without a permit”
How does it square with “Every citizen has a right to bear arms in defense of himself [or herself] and the state”(Art. I, § 15)???
Hey now, you can do that just fine from your living room!
Hey, Did anyone mention Massachusetts ?(RE: The Sanctuary City-State !!! Home of Elizabeth “Pocahontas” Warren !!! Operated by (R- as in RINO) Governor. Charlie “The Barker ” Baker…Overseer to the US Constitutional-Bill of Rights under the Strict Scrutiny of MA. AG./ Mr. (Ms.) Maury ” Heil Hitler” Healy….)
Ugh. Connecticut. All the fiscal insanity of Illinois and about as gun-friendly as California.
Hey at least CT didn’t raise taxes $5 billion per year as CA did today. Massive gas tax increase and other fees, all going to the corrupt public sector unions in CA. Moonbeam Brown.
CT is estimating a $1.7B shortfall over their next 2 year budget. They will be passing some tax increases (A proposal has been submitted to raise pistol permit fees from $70 to $300) because they certainly won’t cut spending.
Steve, it’s time to move north, to America (Maine).
A pleasant surprise no doubt, but to become complacent over this would be a major folly.
Off topic are there any readers around Sacramento? I’m here for weekend and local range can’t hire firearms to a single person under California anti suicide laws.
Easier in at home in Australia to hire firearms while traveling
What in the hell?!? Was there a rash of suicides by despondent single people at California gun ranges at some point?!
I’m not in the PRC (thank the fates), so I’m no help, but I am sorry for your troubles. That’s baffling beyond all reason and good sense.
It may not be law, it may be insurance. One range in CO I used to go to requires a buddy system for rentals. Another doesn’t.
And a guy rented a gun and killed himself there about 5 months ago. Ugh. Not fair to the customers and employees. If you absolutely, positively, must off yourself? Do it in private.
Zeke
Gun shop employee I talked two is from Oregon and he had never heard of it until he moved and was told this as part of his job. I looked at all the ranges in the area website and all have it.
No one at home ever believes me that it is harder to go to range here than back in Queensland. In Albuquerque in two weeks time and should be ok there.
Yeah, that’s a new one on me too. One of my best friends lives in L.A., but he’s married, so maybe it hasn’t come up when they’ve gone to their range. I’ll have to ask him about it.
Have fun in the Land of Enchantment! NM has some quirks, but I do like that place. 🙂
I don’t get it you can’t open carry in CT anyways
Yes, it is legal to open carry in Connecticut. Whether the police will follow the law or conspire to lie and arrest you anyway is another matter. This case is in the Courts. Prosecution dropped all charges, and the police are being sued civilly:
http://gunwatch.blogspot.com/2016/01/ct-police-gotta-cover-our-ass-on-open.html
I don’t have a problem with this requirement for OC. My only issue is that it’s never a “let’s do this one thing”.
Okay, now that that one’s over with, Connecticut permit holders need to keep the pressure on state legislators to thwart Gov. Malloy’s obscene proposals to increase carry permit fees and renewals. And don’t forget that this is the guy who wants to tax every Connecticut driver on the amount of miles they drive annually! What’s next, Malloy, tax the number of breaths I take every year? At the rate Connecticut residents are leaving for other states, Malloy may find that he’s the only resident left to tax.
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