Just after Democrat Gov. Ned Lamont signed a multi-faceted anti-gun bill into law, the state of Connecticut was hit with a legal challenge in federal court.
The sweeping measure signed by Lamont, H.B. 6667, is a 73-page law proposed to the legislature by the Governor. It passed the Democrat-controlled Connecticut General Assembly on largely party-line votes and was celebrated by big-name national gun control groups.
As to what it covers, the text of the legislation is so byzantine that the simplified bill analysis alone runs almost 50 pages.
Among the worse tenets when it comes to gun rights are that it bans the open carry of firearms, adopts gun rationing, retroactively bans most of the rifles exempted under the state's prior "assault weapon" laws, expands the state's mandatory gun lock law, and puts restrictions on the sale of body armor. Further, it bans the sale of semiautomatic rifles that can hold more than five rounds to anyone under the age of 21, to also include private sales.
Minutes after Lamont applied his signature, a nonprofit conservative group, We the Patriots USA, filed a federal lawsuit challenging the new law as unconstitutional. The Idaho-based group is the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit, joined by two Connecticut residents.
"The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution is clear in that 'the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.' This law severely infringes upon the Second Amendment rights of the people of Connecticut," said Brian Festa, vice president of We the Patriots.
"Although the bill was passed by radical anti-gun activists in the Connecticut legislature under the auspices of enhancing public safety, it does just the opposite," contends Festa. "With crime rates soaring in the state, this law strips the law-abiding citizens of Connecticut of their right to defend themselves and their families. We will not allow this to go unchallenged, and we are confident that the United States Supreme Court will strike down this egregious violation of our natural rights."
Banner image: A non-Connecticut compliant ATI Galeo. (Photo: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
