Connecticut gun control proponents scored a victory back in April, when Gov. Dan Malloy (D) signed into law a restrictive new gun regulation, but that doesn’t mean gun rights advocates are giving up the fight. Instead, one Newtown-based firearm trade association is filing a lawsuit.
According to The Connecticut Times, The National Shooting Sports Foundation, headquartered only a few miles away from the Sandy Hook elementary school, filed the lawsuit in a federal court against Malloy and Connecticut lawmakers on Monday.
The foundation argues in the lawsuit that Malloy and others have abused their power in order to the pass the far-reaching legislation and is calling for the law to be declared invalid.
“This is an action to vindicate the rights of the citizens of Connecticut whose federal and state constitutional rights have been adversely affected and significantly restricted by the passage of [the bill] through an abuse of the ’emergency certification’ procedure, circumvention of the normal legislative process, and violation of Connecticut statutory law,” the lawsuit states.
The foundation also argued in the lawsuit that the new legislation encroaches upon an individual’s Second Amendment right to bear arms and violates Article 1, Section 15, of the Connecticut Constitution, which states that every citizen has a right to bear arms in defense of himself and the state.
Despite the pushback, however, state officials remain confident that the law will be upheld.
“We’ve known for some time that groups opposed to the new gun violence-prevention law would be filing suit against it,” Andrew Doba, Malloy’s spokesman, told The Connecticut Times. “We believe the bill improves public safety, and we will work with the attorney general’s office to defend it.”
The restrictions were signed into law by Malloy in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, banning assault weapons and ammunition magazines holding more than 10 rounds. It also broadened background checks and will penalize gun owners who don’t register with the state police by Jan. 1.
The foundation has not been the first to push back against the restrictive gun control legislation, however. PTR Industries, a Connecticut-based gun manufacturer has decided to leave the state in wake of the regulations, taking with them valuable jobs and revenue from Connecticut’s economy.
