Is This the Culture We Want?

Nine more Connecticut families now have to feel the devastation of gun violence in the workplace. A worker at the Hartford Distributors plant in Manchester went on a rampage and killed eight fellow employees and then himself. The killings took place after a disciplinary hearing in which the shooter, 34-year-old Omar Thornton, resigned from the company. Resignation was the alternative he was offered to termination. During the hearing, Thornton was confronted with videos showing that he was stealing from his employer, a distributor of beer and wine products.

We feel deeply for the friends and families of the victims. But as a society we have come to accept these shootings almost as a normal course of events. Instead, we should be asking ourselves, "Is this the culture we want?" Read More

The Limits of the Supreme Court Ruling

The Supreme Court decision Monday on the McDonald v Chicago case held that the Second Amendment right, as determined in the controversial 2008 decision in D.C. v Heller, for individuals to keep and bear arms for self defense extends to the states and not just to the Federal Government. Because Washington, D.C. is a federal district, Heller did not resolve the issue of whether the Second Amendment applies to state and local governments. Now, with the McDonald decision, the Court has fully applied the incorporation clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to this Second Amendment right, meaning that the right to bear arms applies not only to the Federal Government but to the states as well. The ruling remands Chicago's handgun ban back to the 7th Circuit Court for further review. There is little doubt that the city's handgun ban will be struck down as a result of the Court's decision.

The ruling has led to a great deal of discussion as to what other state and local gun laws might be overturned. The answer is not many. Read More

Strong Gun Laws and Low Gun Ownership Equal Low Firearm Deaths
By Ron Pinciaro, CAGV Co-Executive Director

We've all heard the talking points from the National Rifle Association and other gun rights groups that more guns are the answer to the horrors of gun violence we've faced as a nation. More guns on campus, arming teachers, more guns in the homes for protection…these have always been the response we get to the persistent rate of gun deaths in the United States. Read more

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Tell Starbucks: Keep Guns Out of its Coffee Shops

Over the past few months, more and more gun owners have been gathering at restaurants and coffee shops like Starbucks with guns strapped to their hips, intimidating fellow patrons.

Businesses can legally prohibit guns from being carried in their establishments - and so far, Peet's Coffee & Tea and California Pizza Kitchen have heeded customer concerns and barred the open carrying of guns. But Starbucks is refusing to prohibit the open carrying of firearms in its stores, despite protests from loyal customers. Because of Starbucks' refusal, the Brady Campaign has teamed up with CREDO Action to tell Starbucks to keep guns out of its coffee shops.

The practice of packing heat in places like Starbucks is intimidating and could be potentially dangerous to our families and communities - and it must be stopped.

It's everyone's right to sit in a restaurant or coffee shop with their families without intimidation or fear of guns, either concealed or openly carried.

Under the law, Starbucks has the right to adopt a gun-free policy, with an exception for uniformed police officers. Such a policy can easily be implemented in most cases by putting up signs at store entrances.

We need to tell Starbucks to bar guns in its stores. These individuals who have been carrying guns into Starbucks have all the firepower of a SWAT team, and none of the law enforcement training.

Click the link below or paste to your browser to sign the petition today: http://act.credoaction.com/campaign/starbucks_guns/?rc=brady

Tell Starbucks to keep guns out of its stores! The petition to be delivered to Howard Schultz, Chairman, President and CEO of Starbucks.

CAGV Joins with Hartford Communities for Public Safety to Stop Gun Violence in Hartford

As part of our "Red Flag" campaign, CT Against Gun Violence is working with Hartford's Communities for Public Safety in a campaign to help control gun violence in Hartford. Hartford's rate of gun violence is the highest in the state. The Red Flag Campaign, whose slogan is "Where Did They Get the Gun," highlights the fact that most gun crimes are committed by persons who are prohibited from owning guns. But most prosecutions are for criminal possession, while there are very few trafficking prosecutions. So where did these criminals get the gun?

As part of the campaign, CAGV and the Communities for Public Safety have issued the following petition:

The Communities' Committee for Public Safety and Connecticut
Against Gun Violence Ask Where did they get the gun?

We, the undersigned because of our concern for the quality of life in Hartford and our distress over excessive gun violence in the City, wish to be informed on a regular basis of the results of all gun traces for guns recovered from crime scenes and search and seizures. Since all recovered guns are required to be traced, we want to be advised of the source of these guns coming into our City that are falling into the hands of prohibited users who are committing violent crimes with these illegally obtained firearms. We feel that this is an important first step for our Community in dealing with the unacceptable level of gun violence in Hartford.

We are in the process of gathering signatures for this petition. Please help us by adding your name to our list.

To do this send your name and address to erichardson45@yahoo.com.

Just mention "petition" in the subject of your email.

 

 
   
 

Firearms Executives Indicted for Bribery

Twenty-two executives from sixteen firearms companies were indicted on January 21, 2010, for attempting to bribe a foreign country in order to sell arms there. The indictment stemmed from a sting operation in which the executives were asked: Would you pay bribes to get a piece of a $15 million contract to equip the presidential guard of an African country? The twenty-two executives indicted answered yes, put it in writing, and wrote checks. Twenty-one of the Executives were arrested in Las Vegas at the "Shot" show, the heavily attended annual trade show of the firearms industry.

Read the New York Times article.

Read the Department of Justice Release.

ATF Releases New Data on Recovered Gun Traces

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) has recently released data on gun traces for 2008. ATF is the agency charged with tracing all guns recovered by law enforcement to determine the legal purchaser of the weapon.

For CT, ATF traced 1563 guns recovered by CT Law Enforcement in 2008. 478 of those weapons (30.6%) were purchased here in CT, the remainder from out of state.

602 of the weapons (38.5%) were recovered in Hartford, New Haven, and Bridgeport.

Click here to see a complete summary of the ATF report for Connecticut.

 

 

 

 

Help us in our effort to reduce gun violence in Connecticut.

   
 
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