Community Corner

Cheshire Legislators Split on New Gun Control Regulations

The bill gives the state some of the toughest gun laws in the country and includes stipulations for mental health and school security, but some town legislators are concerned it infringes on personal rights.

New gun regulations passed by the Connecticut General Assembly and Gov. Dannel P. Malloy Thursday now give the state some of the strictest laws in the nation, but local legislators said aspects of the bill are infringing on the rights of Cheshire residents.

The town’s legislators expressed concerns regarding the measure, as legislation passed Connecticut's General Assembly gives Connecticut sweeping new gun laws that include expanded bans on high-powered weapons, high-capacity magazines and universal background checks.

"I was opposed to this, in this form, from the start. To restrict the rights of law abiding gun owners does nothing to prevent or address the concerns left by the tragedy in December,” said State Senator Joe Markley, R-Cheshire, Southington. “We need to be very careful about interfering with people’s personal liberty and constitutional rights."

Despite a vote that saw 105 representatives in favor of the new laws to just 44 opposed, two of Cheshire's three state representatives voted against the measure. State Reps. Al Adinolfi and Lezlye Zupkus were each opposed, while Mary Fritz supported the measure.

Markley was one of 10 opposed to the bill in the state senate, where 26 supported it including State Sen. Dante Bartolomeo.

House Majority Leader Joseph Aresimowicz said he believes the measure, which also included several changes to the state’s mental health and children’s safety laws, was a necessary step in preventing future tragedies and addressing concerns expressed following the Newtown school shooting that left 26 dead at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

“I pray today’s bill—the most far-reaching gun safety legislation in the country— will prevent other families from ever experiencing the dreadful loss that the 26 Sandy Hook families have felt,” Aresimowicz said.

“I listened to the parents from Newtown over the past few months, who despite their pain and grief, joined together and demanded we do whatever it takes to keep Connecticut’s children safe,” he continued. “As a lawmaker, but more importantly as the father of two elementary school age children, I took that responsibility very seriously.”

But Markley said while he applauds the effort to address concerns within gun control in the state, the measure goes too far in infringing on personal rights without truly reaching the core of an issue that led to the December shooting.

Markley, a member of the Mental Health Committee, said other aspects of the bill including early measures in mental health reform did not get enough attention and may have been paired with gun regulations as a smokescreen to push the restriction measures through.

"The measures passed, specifically on gun control, are based on an ignorance about what weapons were involved and a desire to pass restrictions regardless of the effect of what is being passed," he said.

Malloy said Thursday that he is proud of the steps the state has taken to actively and aggressively address concerns surrounding gun violence in Connecticut.

"In some sense, I hope this is an example to the rest of the nation," he said. "Certainly to our leaders in Washington, who seem so deeply divided on an issue like universal background checks, when the country is not divided itself."

Malloy said around 90 percent of Americans support universal background checks for those purchasing guns, one of the stipulations in the new law.

"We can never undo the tragedy that happened Dec. 14," said Malloy. "But we can make Connecticut towns and cities safer, and this bill does that."

Some, including parents of victims, had called for extensive changes after the shooting. Malloy said he has set August 1 as a deadline for the structures within the bill to be put in place, saying he met with law enforcement officials Thursday morning to discuss a timeframe. The law:

  • Expands the existing Connecticut Assault Weapons Ban to include more high-powered weapons
  • Bans the sale of high-capacity magazines and requires registration for those who currently own high-capacity magazines
  • Establishes universal background checks for firearms
  • Sets up a "dangerous weapon offender" registry
In addition, the bill contains many mental health and school security provisions, including:
  • Creating a task force to study mental health among Connecticut's young adults
  • Allowing Boards of Educations to institute in-service mental health training
  • Requiring schools to develop safety plans
  • Establishing a council to develop safety standards for new school building projects
Click here for full text of the bill.

Patch Editor Davis Dunavin contributed to this report.

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