HARTFORD — An increase in the number of newly trained state and local police officers, reestablishment of a gun task force, and changes to some existing state gun laws are among the proposals Governor Ned Lamont unveiled in a legislative package aimed at combatting gun violence as the General Assembly prepared to convene on February 9.

While the Democrat stressed that Connecticut “is one of the safest states in the country,” Lamont acknowledged being “shocked” during his time in office by the large number of guns in the state.

“While Connecticut remains one of the safest states in the nation with a violent crime rate less than half of the national rate, one shooting is one too many, and it is our responsibility to enact sensible policies that make our communities safer,” Lamont said. “These are common sense proposals that are focused on protecting our neighborhoods, stopping the illegal flow of guns into our state, and providing law enforcement and the communities they serve with the resources they need to address the root causes of violence.”

Lamont noted that the state has more guns, both legal and illegal.

“More guns on the street, more guns in the home means more gun violence and we’re suffering from that gun violence,” said Lamont. “You’re not tough on crime if you’re weak on guns.”

US Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn) in a statement on February 8 said he was “glad to see our state continue leading the way” on gun safety laws.

“Investing in community violence intervention programs, stopping the flow of illegal ghost guns, and tightening laws around safe storage are proven ways to reduce gun violence and keep our communities safe,” stated Murphy. “It’s also great to see the Governor’s focus on gun violence as a public health epidemic, dedicating serious dollars to reimburse hospital-based violence intervention programs. This progress is only possible because of the persistent advocacy of the anti-gun violence movement, and I’ll keep pushing to make sure we see change at all levels of government.”

Local Reactions

Newtown First Selectman Dan Rosenthal said that adding police officers would be welcome, though without the full details he guessed the majority of that funding would be steered towards larger cities.

“Certainly if we were granted money for police officers we’d put it to good use,” Rosenthal said.

Rosenthal said he was “no expert on the gun stuff,” but “to the extent that illegal guns and ghost guns are kept off the streets, I’m on the side of it.”

On the proposals on open carry, Rosenthal said he was “not a fan” of open carry, and he’d spoken to many gun owners who have said “open carry is not a good idea.” He noted that under current law, it’s difficult for police to question someone open carrying if they have a license to do so.

Overall, he felt that the “efforts on crime have to go beyond this” and there are other issues that should be addressed. He pointed towards the money Newtown and other area municipalities received to help investigate and combat car theft, and how the money ran out a few months ago. He said a continuation of programs like that would help towns fight crime.

“The efforts were significant and yielded very positive results,” said Rosenthal.

Mark Barden, co-founder and CEO of the Sandy Hook Promise Action Fund, spoke positively on the new firearms proposals.

“Governor Lamont’s multi-prong proposal to address gun violence in our state reflects the common sense approach that can help end this epidemic plaguing our nation,” Barden said.

Are You Safer Today?

Republicans, the minority party, have been calling for new legislation to address car thefts and other crimes, especially those involving juvenile offenders. Some legislative Democrats, however, maintain crime in Connecticut remains at near decades-long lows and there’s been a pandemic-driven uptick in certain criminal activity that all states have experienced.

In a joint statement, Republican Reps Craig Fishbein and Greg Howard, the ranking House Republicans on the Judiciary and Public Safety committees respectively, accused the governor of choosing an “aged election-year tactic of attacking law-abiding gun owners in an effort to distract from his administration’s utter failure to address criminal justice policies” that have put police in a bad light and made criminals out to be victims.

“Everyone in Connecticut needs only answer one question to understand: Am I safer today, in my own driveway, than I was before Governor Lamont took office? I hardly think that anyone in Connecticut believes that they are,” the two lawmakers said in a written statement.

Lamont’s package of proposals is varied, ranging from an update to the state’s existing safe gun storage law to an effort to clear backlogs of cases in court. Following are some of the highlights:

*Doubling the number of police trained annually in Connecticut and providing $2.5 million to local police departments to help them hire additional officers.

*Provide $2.5 million to help probation officers reduce recidivism among adults and juvenile offenders.

*Use Medicaid funds to reimburse violence intervention programs in hospitals, a “first in the nation” proposed program, according to Lamont. Lamont also proposed spending $3.5 million in federal funds to create a statewide community violence intervention program.

*Require untraceable pre-2019 “ghost guns” to be registered. They were previously grandfathered from the state’s current ban on ghost guns. Lamont also proposed a new state license for all gun dealers; a new law that automatically disqualifies anyone convicted of a family violence crime from holding a state gun permit; and an expanded assault weapons ban that includes guns manufactured before 1993.

*Providing additional funding for mobile crime labs that can provide rapid forensic science analysis, including DNA analysis.

*Modify carry laws. Currently, gun owners are allowed to open and concealed carry essentially everywhere in Connecticut, even in many sensitive locations such as polling places and protests. Police officers cannot ask those openly brandishing weapons, even on the streets of our center cities, for their permit unless they suspect they’ve committed a crime.

The proposed legislation will make it easier for our law enforcement officers to request the gun permits of those openly carrying firearms, and ban the carrying of firearms in polling places, public buildings, public transit, and at demonstrations (such as marches, rallies, vigils, sit-ins, protests, etc.)

Reporter Jim Taylor can be reached at jim@thebee.com.