Hundreds Join Debate Over Proposed Gun Ban Ordinance In Southbury

SOUTHBURY, CT — Hundreds of people jammed into Pomperaug High School Thursday night as the national gun debate came to Southbury at least for one night. The Board of Selectmen is considering an ordinance from local Democrats that would ban guns on town property and at town events and that has touched off a firestorm of debate.

On one side is the NRA and its members who say the proposed ordinance is nothing more than "an attempt by misguided gun control activists to turn the town into a ‘gun-free zone,' Fox 61 TV reports. The NRA claimed that the ordinance could put "law-abiding citizens" at risk, Fox 61 reports. The NRA prior to Thursday's meeting urged members to attend and speak out.

On the other side is Connecticut Against Gun Violence, which is a non-profit organization, and they too urged their supports to attend Thursday's meeting, but they urged supporters to speak on behalf of the proposed ordinance.

Mary Ellen Cleary, of Southbury, told NBC Connecticut, that she "wants to be safe when I go to a public place and a public meeting." While, another attendee said that if the town creates a "gun-free zone," it invites armed criminals to exploit that situation, NBC Connecticut reports.

Guns are already banned at parks and the Senior Center in Southbury, WFSB 3 TV reports. Kathy Bower, of Southbury, said because the town is so close to Sandy Hook, she is in favor of the ordinance.

"I think we've all gone through a lot, living close to Sandy Hook, having children in school system, having lockdowns, watching our children grow up in fear, is one reason," Bower said, according to WFSB 3 TV.

After three hours of discussion from the public, no vote was taken. The next meeting on the topic is scheduled for Nov. 16, NBC Connecticut reports.

In a lengthy statement sent to Patch and other media, Connecticut Against Gun Violence said:

"In reaction to the chilling events of Charlottesville, a group of citizens in Southbury, CT proposed an ordinance to prohibit firearms at events on town property and in town-owned buildings. For most people, their intent is hardly controversial: protect public safety and keep citizens from being intimidated. A recent study published in the American Journal of Public Health concluded, “Most Americans, including most gun owners, support restricting public places legal gun owners can carry firearms.”

But as we see again and again, any common-sense gun control measure is controversial to a vocal segment of gun rights extremists. They continue to peddle the false narrative that carrying guns in public makes them safer, as the NRA wrote in response to the proposed Southbury ordinance, “Time and again we have seen
that gun-free zones leave law-abiding citizens as sitting ducks for criminals intent on doing us harm.” The claim is simply not true.

An analysis conducted by the gun violence prevention group Everytown for Gun Safety concluded that, between 2009 and 2016, just 10 percent of mass shootings—defined as an incident where four or more people, excluding the shooter, are shot and killed—took place in “gun-free zones” or areas where civilians are prohibited from carrying firearms.

Good guys with guns rarely stop shootings. An FBI analysis of active shooter incidents from 2000 to 2013 found that just 3% were stopped by armed civilians. The number of incidents where unarmed citizens successfully restrained the shooter was more than four times as great, at 13.1%.

There is a strong legal foundation for prohibiting firearms on town property. A long-standing Southbury ordinance (Code of Ordinances, Sec 14-48) already prohibits firearms in town parks. Lower courts have relied on the Heller Supreme Court decision to uphold laws forbidding carrying of firearms in a variety of public and
private locations.

Armed civilians make it harder for law enforcement to do their job. Police can’t distinguish between “good guys” with guns and “bad guys,” significantly complicating response to active shooter situations or even crowd control. After the shooting of five police officers in Dallas, police chief David Brown remarked, “We don’t know who the good guy is versus the bad guy when everyone starts shooting.”

Provocative displays of firearms are not protected by the First Amendment. The Supreme Court established guidelines for assessing whether actions are protected by the First Amendment. Courts have routinely found that carrying, displaying or brandishing a firearm is generally not protected. State courts have long deemed it reasonable to regulate the carrying of deadly weapons at demonstrations where they could be used to intimidate.

CT Against Gun Violence and other gun violence prevention organizations are intent on not allowing the NRA’s “guns everywhere” philosophy to take hold in Connecticut and have thus called on our supporters to attend the Southbury Board of Selectmen meeting on November 2, 2017 to defend Southbury citizens’ right to safely, and peacefully, assemble," the Connecticut Against Gun Violence statement concludes.