Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy signs bump stock ban
HARTFORD -- Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy signed legislation on Thursday banning bump stocks, a device that allows guns to fire like automatic weapons. According to CBS affiliate WFSB-TV, Malloy proposed the legislation after the 2017 Las Vegas concert shooting, where 59 people were killed and more than 500 others were injured. Bump stocks were used by the shooter.
Connecticut's new law makes it a class D felony for selling, or buying "rate of fire enhancement." Violators could face up to five years in prison, as well as a fine of up to $5,000. An exception is for licensed firearms manufacturers that are fulfilling a military contract.
After the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, President Trump said he would propose a bump stock ban. In March, Mr. Trump ordered the U.S. Department of Justice to work toward a ban. But since the shooting in Parkland, some states have decided to take their own action.
Connecticut enacted wide-ranging gun control legislation after the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School that claimed the lives of 20 students and six educators in Newtown. In 2016, Connecticut also enacted a law that orders the subjects of temporary restraining orders to give any guns they have to police within 24 hours.
Despite Connecticut's previous action on gun control, the latest legislation has still been met with some criticism in the state. According to WFSB-TV, The Connecticut Citizens Defense League (CCDL) argued bump stocks don't prevent someone from replicating the device.
"While the legislation is intended to promote safety, the information CCDL provided to the judiciary committee revealed that these devices are not required to mimic the act of bump-firing," said Scott Wilson, CCDL president. "Essentially, the legislature passed an insubstantial piece of legislation to appease the gun control movement."
Meanwhile, an organization founded after the Sandy Hook Shooting, Newtown Alliance, showed its support for a bump stock ban.
