General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 6415
January Session, 2011 *_____HB06415PS_JUD031511____*
General Assembly
Substitute Bill No. 6415
January Session, 2011
*_____HB06415PS_JUD031511____*
AN ACT CONCERNING A PERMIT TO SELL AND TO CARRY ELECTRONIC DEFENSE WEAPONS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2011) (a) No person shall advertise, sell, deliver, or offer or expose for sale or delivery, or have in such person's possession with intent to sell or deliver, any electronic defense weapon, as defined in section 53a-3 of the general statutes, without a permit issued in accordance with this section for the sale at retail of electronic defense weapons within the jurisdiction of the authority issuing such permit.
(b) No person shall carry upon his or her person any electronic defense weapon without a permit issued pursuant to this section. The holder of a permit to carry an electronic defense weapon issued pursuant to this section shall carry such permit upon his or her person while carrying such electronic defense weapon. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to the carrying of an electronic defense weapon by any: (1) Parole officer or peace officer of this state or parole officer or peace officer of any other state while engaged in the pursuit of official duties; (2) federal marshal or federal law enforcement agent; or (3) any member of the armed forces of the United States, as defined in section 27-103 of the general statutes, or of this state, as defined in section 27-2 of the general statutes, when on duty or going to or from duty.
(c) (1) An applicant for a permit to sell or carry an electronic defense weapon or for the renewal of such permit shall submit an application to the chief of police or, where there is no chief of police, the warden of the borough or chief executive officer of the municipality, as the case may be, accompanied by a fee of one hundred twenty-five dollars.
(2) (A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B) of this subdivision, the issuing authority shall take the fingerprints of the applicant for a permit or conduct any other method of positive identification required by the State Police Bureau of Identification or the Federal Bureau of Investigation to conduct criminal history records checks in accordance with section 29-17a of the general statutes. The applicant shall pay the fee for the national criminal history records check charged by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for performing such check, and such fee shall be in addition to the fee paid pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection.
(B) The issuing authority shall not take the fingerprints of, conduct such other method of positive identification on, or conduct a criminal history records check of any applicant who has a permit to carry a pistol or revolver in this state.
(3) The issuing authority shall notify the Commissioner of Public Safety upon the receipt of an application for a permit under this section and shall subsequently send a record documenting each such permit granted to the Commissioner of Public Safety for purposes of verifying that such permit applicant or holder is not disqualified from holding such permit pursuant to subdivision (5) of subsection (d) of this section.
(d) The issuing authority shall not issue a permit to carry or sell an electronic defense weapon under this section if the applicant (1) has failed to successfully complete a course in the safety and use of electronic defense weapons, approved by the local authority issuing such permit, (2) has been convicted of a felony or of a violation of subsection (c) of section 21a-279, section 53a-58, 53a-61, 53a-62, 53a-63, 53a-96, 53a-175, 53a-176, 53a-178 or 53a-181d of the general statutes, (3) has been convicted as delinquent for the commission of a serious juvenile offense, as defined in section 46b-120 of the general statutes, (4) has been discharged from custody within the preceding twenty years after having been found not guilty of a crime by reason of mental disease or defect pursuant to section 53a-13 of the general statutes, (5) has been confined in a hospital for persons with psychiatric disabilities, as defined in section 17a-495 of the general statutes, within the preceding twelve months by order of a probate court, (6) is subject to a restraining or protective order issued by a court in a case involving the use, attempted use or threatened use of physical force against another person, (7) is subject to a firearms seizure order issued pursuant to subsection (d) of section 29-38c of the general statutes after notice and hearing, (8) is prohibited from shipping, transporting, possessing or receiving a firearm pursuant to 18 USC 922(g)(4), (9) is an alien illegally or unlawfully in the United States, or (10) is less than twenty-one years of age. The issuing authority shall retain records of each application, whether approved or denied, for five years after receipt of such application.
(e) A person holding a permit issued pursuant to this section shall notify the issuing authority not later than two business days after any change of such person's address. The notification shall include the old address and the new address of such person. Such permit shall be valid for a period of five years and may be renewable.
(f) Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 1-210 and 1-211 of the general statutes, the name and address of any person issued a permit to sell at retail electronic defense weapons pursuant to subsection (a) of this section or a permit to carry an electronic defense weapon pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, shall be confidential and shall not be disclosed, except such information may be disclosed (1) to law enforcement officials acting in the performance of their duties, and (2) to the Commissioner of Mental Health and Addiction Services to carry out the provisions of subsection (c) of section 17a-500 of the general statutes, as amended by this act.
(g) The issuance of any permit to carry an electronic defense weapon does not thereby authorize the possession or carrying of an electronic defense weapon in any premises where the possession or carrying of a weapon is otherwise prohibited by law or is prohibited by the person who owns or exercises control over such premises.
Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2011) The issuing authority may revoke for cause a permit to sell or to carry an electronic defense weapon issued in accordance with section 1 of this act and shall revoke any such permit upon the holder's conviction of a felony or violation specified in subsection (d) of section 1 of this act or upon the occurrence of any event that would have disqualified the holder from being issued the permit pursuant to section 1 of this act.
Sec. 3. Section 17a-500 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2011):
(a) Each court of probate shall keep a record of the cases relating to persons with psychiatric disabilities coming before it under sections 17a-75 to 17a-83, inclusive, 17a-450 to 17a-484, inclusive, 17a-495 to 17a-528, inclusive, 17a-540 to 17a-550, inclusive, 17a-560 to 17a-576, inclusive, and 17a-615 to 17a-618, inclusive, and the disposition of them. [It] Each such court shall also keep on file the original application and certificate of physicians required by said sections, or a microfilm duplicate of such records in accordance with regulations issued by the Probate Court Administrator. All records maintained in the courts of probate under the provisions of said sections shall be sealed and available only to the respondent or his or her counsel unless the Court of Probate, after a hearing held with notice to the respondent, determines such records should be disclosed for cause shown.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, the Commissioner of Mental Health and Addiction Services, [in accordance with] pursuant to section 17a-499, shall maintain information on commitment orders by a probate court and shall provide such information to the Commissioner of Public Safety in fulfillment of [his] the commissioner's obligations under sections 29-28 to 29-38, inclusive, as amended by this act, section 1 of this act and section 53-202d, in such a manner as to report identifying information on the commitment status including, but not limited to, name, address, sex, date of birth and date of commitment, for a person who applies for or holds a permit or certificate under [said] sections 29-28 to 29-38, inclusive, as amended by this act, section 1 of this act and section 53-202d. The Commissioner of Public Safety shall maintain as confidential any such information provided [to him] and shall use such information only for purposes of fulfilling [his] the commissioner's obligations under sections 29-28 to 29-38, inclusive, as amended by this act, section 1 of this act and section 53-202d, except that nothing in this section shall prohibit said commissioner from entering such information into evidence at a hearing held in accordance with section 29-32b.
(c) (1) The Commissioner of Mental Health and Addiction Services shall obtain from the Commissioner of Public Safety the status of any firearm application, permit or certificate under sections 29-28 to 29-38, inclusive, as amended by this act, and section 53-202d, or electronic defense weapon application or permit under section 1 of this act, of each person who is the subject of an order of commitment pursuant to section 17a-499, in such a manner so as to only receive a report on the electronic defense weapon application or permit, firearm application, permit or certificate status of the person with respect to whom the [inquiry is] commissioner made such inquiry.
(2) The Commissioner of Mental Health and Addiction Services shall report to the Commissioner of Public Safety any commitment status and identifying information for any person who is an applicant for or holder of any permit or certificate under [said] sections 29-28 to 29-38, inclusive, as amended by this act, section 1 of this act and section 53-202d.
(3) The Commissioner of Mental Health and Addiction Services shall advise the hospital for psychiatric disabilities to which a person has been committed of the status of a firearm or electronic defense weapon application, permit or certificate of such person under sections 29-28 to 29-38, inclusive, as amended by this act, section 1 of this act and section 53-202d, as reported by the Commissioner of Public Safety for consideration by such hospital in any psychiatric treatment procedures.
(4) The Commissioner of Mental Health and Addiction Services and a hospital for psychiatric disabilities shall maintain as confidential any information provided to said commissioner or such hospital concerning the status of a firearm or electronic defense weapon application, permit or certificate under sections 29-28 to 29-38, inclusive, as amended by this act, section 1 of this act and section 53-202d, of any person.
Sec. 4. Subsection (a) of section 29-38 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2011):
(a) Any person who knowingly has, in any vehicle owned, operated or occupied by such person, any weapon, any pistol or revolver for which a proper permit has not been issued as provided in section 29-28, [or] any machine gun which has not been registered as required by section 53-202 or any electronic defense weapon for which a permit has not been issued as provided in section 1 of this act, shall be fined not more than one thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than five years or both, and the presence of any such weapon, pistol or revolver, [or] machine gun or electronic weapon in any vehicle shall be prima facie evidence of a violation of this section by the owner, operator and each occupant thereof. The word "weapon", as used in this section, means any BB. gun, any blackjack, any metal or brass knuckles, any police baton or nightstick, any dirk knife or switch knife, any knife having an automatic spring release device by which a blade is released from the handle, having a blade of over one and one-half inches in length, any stiletto, any knife the edged portion of the blade of which is four inches or more in length, any martial arts weapon, [or electronic defense weapon, as defined in section 53a-3,] or any other dangerous or deadly weapon or instrument.
Sec. 5. Subsection (a) of section 53-206 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2011):
(a) Any person who carries upon his or her person any BB. gun, blackjack, metal or brass knuckles, or any dirk knife, or any switch knife, or any knife having an automatic spring release device by which a blade is released from the handle, having a blade of over one and one-half inches in length, or stiletto, or any knife the edged portion of the blade of which is four inches or more in length, any police baton or nightstick, or any martial arts weapon, [or electronic defense weapon, as defined in section 53a-3,] or any other dangerous or deadly weapon or instrument, shall be fined not more than five hundred dollars or imprisoned not more than three years, or both. Whenever any person is found guilty of a violation of this section, any weapon or other instrument within the provisions of this section, found upon the body of such person, shall be forfeited to the municipality [wherein] in which such person was apprehended, [notwithstanding any failure of] even if the judgment of conviction [to] does not expressly impose such forfeiture.
Sec. 6. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2011) Not later than October 1, 2011, the Division of State Police within the Department of Public Safety and each municipal police department in the state shall develop a written policy or update its current policy with respect to electronic defense weapons. The Division of State Police and each municipal police department shall inform its police officers of such policy not later than October 1, 2011.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1 October 1, 2011 New section
Sec. 2 October 1, 2011 New section
Sec. 3 October 1, 2011 17a-500
Sec. 4 October 1, 2011 29-38(a)
Sec. 5 October 1, 2011 53-206(a)
Sec. 6 October 1, 2011 New section
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1
October 1, 2011
New section
Sec. 2
October 1, 2011
New section
Sec. 3
October 1, 2011
17a-500
Sec. 4
October 1, 2011
29-38(a)
Sec. 5
October 1, 2011
53-206(a)
Sec. 6
October 1, 2011
New section
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