Bridgeport, CT – During today’s press conference, Governor Ned Lamont was joined by Mayor Ganim, health officials, and other city mayors to discuss gun violence intervention throughout the state. Some of today’s remarks were made by Mayor Ganim, Mayor O’Leary of Waterbury, Mayor Bronin of Hartford, and Mayor Elicker of New Haven; all of whom expressed support for reform surrounding gun laws in the state.

Mayor Ganim stated, “There’s always a discussion around gun violence across America and in our cities. It’s critically important to see so many leaders on every level in Connecticut continue to lead the way on common sense gun laws. I also want to applaud the leadership of men and women in uniform that continue to guide these effective changes in our communities.”

“With these new reforms, I believe that we can work towards making our communities safer for our residents. Quality of life is a significant issue in our city, and I think gun violence intervention will allow us to further dedicate ourselves to improving the safety of our city,” Chief Porter stated.

Among the many proposals made to combat gun violence, plans include spending an additional $2.5 million on community violence intervention programs, banning the open carry of guns in public while allowing concealed carry permits in designated locations, limiting handgun purchases to one per month to discourage straw purchases, and toughening the state ban on ghost guns that do not have serial numbers.

“As we know, shootings have increased across the country and across our state. We’re never going to have our cities be all they can be if people don’t feel safe. That is why we’re rolling out some of the reforms we now have,” Governor Lamont stated. “We’re going to ban the open carry of weapons in public places. It’s worked in other states, and it can be effective, right here in Connecticut.”