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In Connecticut, supporters of the Second Amendment are raising concerns about a proposed legislative measure they believe could restrict self-defense capabilities. They also fear that Democrats might pursue broader gun restrictions in the future.
Democrats in Connecticut have introduced a bill that aims to prohibit most Glock-style pistols capable of being modified into machine guns. The focus is on semiautomatic pistols equipped with a cruciform trigger bar, which can be easily altered with basic tools to incorporate a converter device, allowing the firearm to fire automatically.
Holly Sullivan, President of the Connecticut Citizens Defense League, expressed to Fox News Digital her disapproval, stating that Democrats in the state have opted to target law-abiding gun owners rather than addressing criminal activities through this legislation.
On March 25, 2020, semi-automatic handguns were showcased at a gun store in New Castle, Pennsylvania. (Keith Srakocic/AP)
“They are not addressing the problem of criminals who violate laws,” Sullivan commented. “Instead, they are focusing on law-abiding Americans who own widely-used handguns. Rather than tackling the criminal aspect, they are choosing to eliminate one of the nation’s most favored handguns.”
“Connecticut likes to tout that we have some of the strongest gun laws in America, yet they don’t seem to know how to deal with criminals that are actually in violation of those laws,” she said.
A machine gun conversion device for a Glock handgun can convert the firearm into a machine gun after the switch is installed. The device can be made with a 3-D printer. (John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe/Getty Images)
Sullivan said she’s concerned Democrats won’t stop with banning most Glock-style pistols, and will go even further.
“For anybody who doesn’t live in a deep blue state like this, I hope the message is resonated that they’re never satisfied, whether they come for the rifles or they come for the Glocks, what is after that, we don’t know.” Sullivan said. “They don’t want their constituents to have firearms and they don’t how to deal with the criminals that are misusing them.“
The bill was raised by Democrats Wednesday morning within the 3 a.m. hour, and passed shortly after, according to News 8. Democrat Cathy Osten was the only member of her party who joined Republicans in their attempt to block the bill.
NRA-ILA Executive Director John Commerford told Fox News Digital that the bill creates “barriers to their right to self-defense.”
“And all it does is reduces the options that law-abiding gun owners have to protect themselves and their families. As we know, when seconds count, the police are minutes away. So taking away self-defense options for law-abiding residents of Connecticut is never the answer. The answer is holding criminals accountable for their actions, prosecuting them, and making sure they stay behind bars when they have been convicted,” Commerford said.
Proponents of the bill claim its aim is to close loopholes that allow Glock-style pistols to be converted into machine guns.
Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont speaks at a COVID-19 community vaccination clinic in Stamford, Conn., on March 14, 2021. (John Moore/Getty Images)
“The legislation is keeping up with the technology and as the technology evolves, this law is going to cover that for closing a lot of loopholes, for ghost guns, as well as keeping machine guns off our streets,” Earl Bloodworth with Connecticut Against Gun Violence told WFSB. “Every time a ‘switch’ turns a handgun into a machine gun, the heartbeat of a community quickens with fear. For too long, we have watched technology outpace our laws while families pay the price in grief and trauma that never truly heals.”
In a statement to Fox News Digital, Chris Stone, director of State and Local Affairs for Gun Owners of America, said the bill “does nothing to stop criminals, who already illegally possess machine guns and conversion devices in violation of federal law.”
“Instead, it punishes law-abiding manufacturers, retailers, and Connecticut gun owners by targeting firearms in common use for self-defense, precisely the type of arms protected by the Second Amendment,” he said.
The bill is now headed to Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont’s desk and will go into law if he signs it.
Fox News Digital reached out to Lamont’s office and Glock for comment.