.
Feedback

Gun Owners' Names, Addresses Could Become Public

A West Haven lawmaker has introduced a bill to make public the names of some 170,000 gun owners in Connecticut.

 

If you own a gun in this state your name and address could become public under a bill introduced in the General Assembly by State Rep. Stephen D. Dargan, D-West Haven.

Dargan filed the proposal in response to the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown that killed 20 children and 6 women on Dec. 14. His proposal would overturn a law passed in Connecticut 20 years ago that keeps private the names and addresses of gun owners.

In an interview with the Hartford Courant, Dargan said he wants gun ownership information to fall under the state's Freedom of Information Act in part so that parents can know whether the parents of their child's friends have guns in their homes.

"Maybe their kids are going over to Johnny Smith's, and maybe they want to see whether they have guns in the house," he told the newspaper.

Dargan's proposal follows another bill that was filed recently that seeks to limit who can own gun ammunition in Connecticut and to keep such ammunition out of the hands of felons. Gun control issues are expected to dominate the General Assembly's winter session, which formally begins next week, in the wake of the Newtown massacre.

***

john mitchell January 5, 2013 at 02:53 pm
Another knee jerk proposal that causes more harm then good. Every body wants to get on the bandwagon. If these birds would spend as much time trying to solve the states problems, the state and the people would be better off. By the way, My heart goes out to the Newtown people, I know how they feel, I lost my daughter at 15years old.
pistol permit holder January 5, 2013 at 05:37 pm
we should make public all the elected officials that can't get pistol permits because of there police records, all welfare recipricants, all people over 21(they may have alcohol in the house), all cdl drivers, all motorcycle riders, all car drivers where will it end.
frank cosentino January 5, 2013 at 10:41 pm
when that page is printed in the paper and on the next page we print the names addresses and salaries of all our state officials who are well over paid in the first place i think alot of tax payers would love to know that. i do agree totally with above post."i would love to empty half their closets and see their police records. total idiots thats why this state is the way it is.Dargan would be first on the list.
Just open the door so the psyco's can start robbing these residences for these guns, real smart of you Mr Dargan. It was such a tragic event I do know someone that lost a precious 6 yr old love one in Sandy Hook. Printing names and all won't resolve nothing.
Kybrdplyr January 7, 2013 at 04:27 am
In reading the many comments from both sides of the fence on this issue in a number of different media, I have seen many comment that the reason they keep weapons is to fight against the government should there be an attempt to "take over" the people. (I am probably not writing this correctly but this is to the best of my knowledge.) Likewise, many gun owners have expressed the need for self protection in owning firearms especially against militant type groups, one euphemism best described as "gang bangers."
If this is true, (and, again, this is just from reading many comments and articles), why would it be so bad for the public or adjacent neighbors to know that guns were in this or that home? Wouldn't it be best for the community to be armed against intruders (assuming gun owners care about their fellows which I have no reason to believe they do not)? You might say, why don't they just get their own guns? But, if you had a lot of them, you can only shoot one to two at once while the neighbor could help by using their own number to defend the community. The methodology for knowing who has what, instead of printing this information in the paper (I find this unduly intrusive and somewhat offensive), could be a government (or whatever entity issues the permit for what) WEB site where looking up your neighbors would be strictly optional. That way, people who would want to be helpful would know and those that don't want to know or intrude would not.

Newsletter & Alerts

Get the best stories each day and important breaking news

Subscribe

Not from Norwalk Patch? Find your Local Patch »

Note Article
Just a short thought to get the word out quickly about anything in your neighborhood.
Share something with your neighbors. Write a new post... What's up? Make an announcement, speak your mind, or sell something