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2005 LEGISLATIVE PROPOSAL

  • Existing registration requirements for handguns will be applied to long guns (rifles and shotguns)
  • The reporting of lost or stolen firearms

WHY THIS LEGISLATION?

CT Gun Crime (2000-2002)
Most gun crimes were committed by people who cannot legally own a gun (in 2002, 2/3 of those convicted of homicide had a previous felony conviction).

Long guns pose a significant risk to CT residents

  • Rifles and shotguns accounted for 38% of CT firearms traced by the Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms, Tobacco, and Explosives in 2002.

  • 6 people were killed by long guns in Connecticut in 2002.

Stolen firearms are a problem

  • From 1999-2000, 1,609 CT firearms were reported stolen. There is no way to know how many others might have been stolen but were not reported.

  • Loopholes in CT legislation allow traffickers to divert guns from legal purchasers to illegal users. If a trafficker says that the weapon was stolen, no prosecution is possible.

CURRENT LAW

TO BUY A HANDGUN

ALL SALES (retail, gun show, private) Background check - disqualifiers:

  1. conviction for felony or any of 11 serious misdemeanors
  2. conviction for serious juvenile offense
  3. subject to a protective/restraining order
  4. subject to a firearms seizure order
  5. been found not guilty of a crime by reason of mental disease or defect within the last 20 years
  6. involuntarily committed to a psychiatric facility within the last 12 months
  7. illegal alien

Authorization Number from DPS to complete sale Paperwork filed with authorization number, which registers the sale.

TO BUY A LONG GUN

Retail sales (gun store, gun dealer at gun show) Background check - disqualifiers:

  1. been convicted of a felony
  2. been convicted of a serious juvenile offense
  3. is subject to a protective/restraining order
  4. is subject to a firearms seizure order

Authorization Number from DPS to complete sale Paperwork filed without authorization number, sale is not registered.

Private sale/transfer (between two individuals):

  • NO background check
  • NO authorization by DPS
  • NO registration of the sale

CRIMINAL POSSESSION OF HANDGUNS

A person is in criminal possession of a handgun if s/he has:

  1. been convicted of a felony or any of 11 serious misdemeanors
  2. been convicted of a serious juvenile offense
  3. been found not guilty of a crime by reason of mental disease or defect within the last 20 years
  4. involuntarily committed to a psychiatric facility within the last 12 months
  5. is subject to a protective/restraining order
  6. is subject to a firearms seizure order
  7. is an illegal alien

CRIMINAL POSSESSION OF LONG GUNS

A person is in criminal possession of a long gun if s/he has:

  1. been convicted of a felony
  2. been convicted of a serious juvenile offense
  3. is subject to a protective/restraining order
  4. is subject to a firearms seizure order

OUR LEGISLATION WILL:

  • Require anyone who sells or transfers any firearm to get a DPS authorization number. This allows DPS to conduct a background check and obtain a record of these sales.

  • Make it a crime to possess any firearm if a person has committed any of 7 disqualifiers that currently apply to handguns.

  • Require the reporting of a lost or stolen firearm to the local police or state police troop within 24 hours after a person knows or should known that the firearm was lost or stolen.

  • Increase the fees for the permit to sell, the permit to carry and eligibility certificate by $10. Permit and eligibility certificates are good for five years, and fees have not been raised since 1993. $5 of this increase will be used for implementing this legislation; allowing authorization numbers to be issued seven days a week; and re-opening and operating satellite offices so permits can be renewed locally.

All firearms can kill. For the safety of our children and our communities:

  • the sale and transfer of all firearms (long guns and handguns) must be registered;

  • all lost/stolen firearms must be reported to the police.

Copyright 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 Connecticut Against Gun Violence
cagv.org all rights reserved CAGV 1/18/05