Connecticut: Anti-Gun Bill which Violates Fourth Amendment Heads to Committee |
Tomorrow at 9:00 a.m., the Joint Committee on the Judiciary will hold a meeting to decide whether the committee is going to hear House Bill 6200. Introduced
by state Representatives Caroline Simmons (D-144), William Tong
(D-147), and Daniel J. Fox (D-148), HB 6200 would require a person
openly carrying a firearm to display their permit immediately upon
demand by law enforcement. Please contact the members of the Joint Committee on Judiciary and urge them not to hear this bill! Please click the “Take Action” button below to contact the committee members!
It is legal to openly carry a
handgun in Connecticut so long as the person has a valid Permit to
Carry. Connecticut State Police Training Bulletin 2013-01 states that
“personnel should NOT arrest a properly permitted individual merely for
publicly carrying a hand gun or firearm in plain view absent exigent
circumstances.” Examples of these exigent circumstances are a “‘Breach
of Peace’ situation or the person is under the influence of intoxicating
liquor/drugs.”
Under the Fourth Amendment, as
affirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court in Terry v. Ohio nearly half a
century ago, police officers can stop and briefly detain a person to
investigate only if they have a reasonable suspicion, supported by
articulable facts that criminal activity is occurring. This is why
Connecticut law should require that officers must have a “reasonable
suspicion” that a crime is being committed before they can request proof
of a permit.
This proposed bill is the equivalent
of allowing the police to stop a motorist to demand their driver’s
license solely because they are driving. Law-abiding people carry
firearms for self-defense. They shouldn't be treated as being engaged
in criminal activity simply because they are choosing to openly exercise
their constitutional Right to Keep and Bear Arms.
This bill infringes on the rights of those who choose to exercise their Second Amendment rights, while doing nothing to deter criminals. It must be opposed and the current law preserved. |
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© 2017 National Rifle Association of America, Institute For Legislative Action. To contact NRA-ILA call 800-392-8683. Address: 11250 Waples Mill Road Fairfax, Virginia 22030. |
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