Democrats Call On Boughton to Support Stricter Gun Laws

DANBURY, CT - Democratic candidate for mayor Chris Setaro today stated his strong support for the U.S. Conference of Mayors' demand for action on national gun safety legislation and the implementation of universal background checks. He further called on Mayor Mark Boughton to sign the letter sent by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, calling on Congress to act immediately on gun safety legislation.

"Connecticut is a leader on gun safety legislation, and our laws are models for the nation that Congress should adopt. It hasn't. With the United States plagued by mass shootings, more and more of which are based on extreme hate, this is no time for leaders to be silent. We have more guns than people, and we far outpace the world in gun violence. Gun laws work, and states like Connecticut with the strongest gun laws have fewer acts of gun violence," Setaro said in a news release. "Every Mayor should sign this letter and send a strong signal that we need federal action now."

The letter specifically urges that the Senate pass H.R. 112 and H.R. 8. According to Setaro, this legislation requires all firearm purchases to undergo a NICS background check, prohibits unlicensed transfers of guns through unregulated secondary sales, and increases law enforcement's ability to trace crime guns.

"Mayor Boughton, a member of the U.S. Conference of Mayors and a former member of Mayors Against Illegal Guns until 2014, just 17 months after the Sandy Hook tragedy, owes the people of Danbury an explanation for why he hasn't joined a bi-partisan group of mayors from across the country in calling for action on common sense national gun safety legislation," Setaro said.

Setaro is the former president of the City Council, and lost previously in a Danbury mayoral race versus Boughton in 2001.