Governor Rell Signs Gun Safety Legislation

08/07/07, East Haven - Governor Rell (seated) signed our bill requiring the reporting of lost and stolen firearms. Click here to see news coverage of the signing. She is joined by (behind the Governor), East Haven Minority Leader April Capone Almon and Rep. William Tong (D-Stamford/New Canaan). The man to the left is not identified. Additional photos will be posted shortly.

VICTORY!! June 4, 2006 - House passes Lost/Stolen bill 94-56

The CT House passed the lost/stolen bill on a 94-56 vote (click here to see how your legislator voted) . The bill now goes to the Governor for signature. Governor Rell has been supportive of this legislation, so we expect that will sign the bill.

The exciting vote came after 4 hours of debate. In addition, supporting legislators defeated six amendments placed on the bill by the opposition. While a few of the amendments had merit, it was important that NO amendments pass; doing so would send the bill back to the Senate and there was not enough time for the Senate to act upon the bill before the session ended.

The amendments included:

• Funding for the state-wide trafficking task force (we believe this will be included in the state budget). Amendment failed 65-84.
• Decreasing the allowable blood alcohol level when hunting with a firearm. Amendment failed 71-79.
• Granting immunity to anyone who had a gun stolen that was later used in the commission of a crime (even if the gun had been illegally transferred to someone); failed 52-97
• Making it a capitol felony for the threatened use of physical force while the person doing the threatening is in possession of a stolen firearm (even if the person did not show the gun). Penalty would be life imprisonment without parole or execution. Amendment failed 11-138
• Requiring data collection on all types of situations that might involve stolen firearms. Amendment failed 62-86
• Requiring Judicial Branch to give priority to gun cases and to assign 10 percent of judges to gun courts. Amendment failed 31-118

At that point the opposition halted calling any of the 22 other amendments they had filed, so the underlying bill was voted on (just the lost/stolen language). There was no debate and, just after midnight the final vote was taken.

Read news coverage of the vote.

May 23, 2007 - Senate passes Lost/Stolen bill 24-11

SB 938 - AN ACT CONCERNING A STUDY OF LIMITING THE PURCHASE OF HANDGUNS TO ONE PER MONTH passed out of the Senate by a bi-partisan vote of 24-11 (click here to see the vote)

Speaking in suport of the bill were Senators Stillman (co-chair Public Safety), McDonald (co-chair Judiciary), Nickerson, Gomes, McKinney, Looney (Majority Leader), LeBeau, and Coleman; speaking in opposition were Senators Gugliemo, Kissel, and Debicella.

The bill accomplishes the following:

• Require gun owners to report lost or stolen firearms to police within 72 hours of discovery of the theft (penalty: 1st offense infraction; 2nd offense Class D felony; intentional failure Class C felony).
• Require the Department of Public Safety to provide new gun permit holders with information about the law.
• Create a new crime of firearms trafficking (person knowingly allows his/her guns to get into the possession of someone who is prohibited by law from owning guns (penalty: 1st offense: Class C felony for <= 5 firearms, Class B felony for > 5 firearms). Antique guns and rifles and shotguns are exempt.
  

Click here to learn more about this issue.

Gun violence continues to plague Connecticut. Some fast facts from 2006:

50% - New Haven crime guns were originally purchased in Connecticut.
37 - average number of crime guns prevented from coming into the community by arresting 1 gun trafficker.
6 - Connecticut kids under 16 were firearms homicide victims in 2006: Kerry Foster, 15; Rashod Leak, 15; Jose Pagan Jr., 14; Jajuana Cole, 13; Justus Suggs, 13; Kylie Flannery, 9. ALL of the suspects arrested in these murders were in illegal possession of the gun.

• SB 938 - AN ACT CONCERNING A STUDY OF LIMITING THE PURCHASE OF HANDGUNS TO ONE PER MONTH
  
  Senate passes Lost/Stolen bill 24-11. SB 938, passed out of the Senate by a bi-partisan vote of 24-11 (click here to see the vote)
  
  Speaking in suport of the bill were Senators Stillman (co-chair Public Safety), McDonald (co-chair Judiciary), Nickerson, Gomes, McKinney, Looney (Majority Leader), LeBeau, and Coleman; speaking in opposition were Senators Gugliemo, Kissel, and Debicella.
  
  The bill will:

  • Require gun owners to report lost or stolen firearms to police within 72 hours of discovery of the theft (penalty: 1st offense infraction; 2nd offense Class D felony; intentional failure Class C felony).
  • Require the Department of Public Safety to provide new gun permit holders with information about the law.

  • Create a new crime of firearms trafficking (person knowingly allows his/her guns to get into the possession of someone who is prohibited by law from owning guns (penalty: 1st offense: Class C felony for <= 5 firearms, Class B felony for > 5 firearms). Antique guns and rifles and shotguns are exempt.

  Click here to learn more about this issue.
  
  Lost/Stolen Firearms FAQs
  

• Connecticut Gun Crime (2002-2004)

  • 187 homicides
  • 2,018 aggravated assaults
  • 4,547 robberies
  • Gun violence is increasing - Homicides by gun increased in 2006 by 38% vs. 2005 and 78% vs. 2002!

  
  Most gun crimes are committed by people who cannot legally own a gun.

  WHERE DO THEY GET THE GUNS?

  • All guns start with a legal sale.

  • Guns move into the illegal market by traffickers or "straw purchasers" - people who can own guns purchase them to sell to people who cannot.

  • One way this happens is that traffickers use the "it was stolen" excuse: a crime gun is traced back to the person who legally purchased the gun and, when the owner is asked how his gun got to the person who committed the crime, he says that the gun was stolen.

  • Prosecution of these straw purchasers is not possible because our laws do not require reporting of stolen firearms.

  Stolen firearms play a prominent role in arming criminals.

  • 26% of trafficked firearms had been stolen.
  • 21% of armed criminals obtained guns from groups known to steal guns.
  • From 1999-2000, 1,609 CT firearms were reported stolen. There is no way to know how many others have been stolen but were not reported.

  • There is no way to know how many other guns have been stolen but were not reported.

  Connecticut residents support this requirement.

  • 98% of CT residents surveyed*, and 96% of gun owners, supported requiring the reporting of lost or stolen firearms

  *Poll conducted by the Center for Research & Public Policy at Sacred Heart University, May 13- May17, 2003

  STOP FIREARMS TRAFFICKING!
  For the safety of our children and our communities,
  All lost/stolen firearms must be reported to the police.
  Contact your legislator and urge them to support this bill.

  Stolen firearms play a prominent role in arming criminals

  • 26% of trafficked firearms had been stolen

  • 21% of armed criminals obtained guns from groups known to steal guns

  How Many Guns are Stolen?

  • Reported (2 years - 1999 & 2000): National: 286, 563; Connecticut: 1,609 (1)

  • Total estimated (2 years): National: 1,000,000; Connecticut: 5,615 (2)

  States with Laws Requiring That Lost/Stolen Firearms be Reported:

  State	Language	Penalty
  New York	Report loss/theft within 24 hours of the discovery	Fine not to exceed one hundred dollars.
  Massachusetts	Report loss/theft "forthwith"	Suspension or permanent revocation of firearms license (needed to possess / purchase firearms); fine of $200-$1,000 for first offense, and $1,000-$5,000 for second offense.
  Michigan	Report within 5 days after s/he knows of theft; no requirement to report loss.	Fine of not more than $500
  Ohio	Report loss/theft immediately upon discovery	Misdemeanor of the 4th degree (jail term no longer than 30 days and could include unspecified fines).
  Rhode Island	Report lost/theft within 24 hours of discovery	Fine between $50 and $100 for "knowingly violating."
  California	Dealers must report loss/theft within 48 hours	Revocation of licenses

  Arresting The Possessor Does Not Solve The Gun Problem

  • Arrest an Individual - Prevent 0 crime-guns from entering the community.
  • Arrest a Trafficker - Prevent an average of 37 crime-guns from entering the community.

  • Impact Illegal Diversion Schemes - Prevent an average of 354 crime-guns from entering the community. (Following the Gun: Enforcing Federal Laws Against Firearms Trafficking, Dept. of the Treasurey, June 2000, p.13.)

  Lost/Stolen Firearms FAQs

  1: Americans for Gun Safety Foundation. Stolen Firearms: Arming the Enemy. Washington, D.C. December, 2002.
  2: Cook, Philip J. and Jens Ludwig. Guns in America: Results of a Comprehensive Survey of Gun Ownership and Use. Washington, D.C.: Police Foundation, 1996.