WOW talk about a blatant attack on Open Carry by Connecticut

Shawn Mitola · Jul 26, 2011

So I was reading WTNH's website and I saw an advertisement for the CT program for "See something Say something" SO I was curious what types of ridiculous things they are telling people to look out for and at the VERY bottom of the page I saw this

"People openly possessing a weapon or dangerous item"

I am in AWE that this perfectly legal activity per CT law has somehow made its way onto what is basically a terrorist watch list of things people should report to the police as being suspicious. They try to be careful by listing it as something the "MAY" be suspicious but it sends a VERY clear message to me... open carry and be treated like a terrorist. I tell you one thing though I'm gonna contact a friend of mine at channel 8 and find out who is in charge of keeping that ad on the website and see what I can do to get it taken down. I also am curious if someone can help me out with contacting the CT dept of transportation and the CT dept of homeland security who have their names on this website and see if I can straighten them out about open carry and explain to them the possible legal ramifications of tell people to call the police on someone who is openly carrying a firearm.... I think I have found my first big issue I'm going to jump on. This really irritated me to no end and I'm gonna do what I can to get that website changed.

below is the link to the site its at the bottom of the page.

http://www.keepctsafe.com/something.htm

Ctclassic · Jul 26, 2011

OTHER SOMETHINGS THAT MIGHT BE SUSPICIOUS

Strange vehicles left unattended near busy areas or under bridges.
Strange packages left unattended in malls, parking garages, stadiums, theaters or other crowded public places.
People wearing oversized clothing for their body type or excessively bulky clothing in hot weather.
Anyone abandoning an item behind and leaving the area quickly.
People wearing a uniform but not appearing to be involved in an appropriate activity.
People openly possessing a weapon or dangerous item.
Strange chemical smells.

Shawn, I agree, this definately needs to be addressed....ASAP! I'll ask around to see if I can get a contact number/name from someone at the DOT.

Shawn Mitola · Jul 26, 2011

I am in the process of sending an email to the commissioner of the CT Dept of Homeland Security as well as a few other people in the DEPT then I am going to copy the email and send it to people at the DOT as well. I'll post the email here when I'm done flushing it out. I'm sure someone else might be able to word it better and frankly i'm afraid I might be a little to angry right now to be entirely civil but this is just crazy and it needs to stop NOW.

:::EDIT::: Here is the email so far I haven't mailed it yet but I'm close to pushing the send button on this for CT homeland.
:::EDIT 2::: I was going to wait for some feedback but I sent it anyway and I'll see what they say.

To Whom it may concern,

Good Morning, I am a very concerned CT resident, and I am writing to you today to express my displeasure with a particular item on your www.keepctsafe.com website. You are telling the general public to keep an eye out for suspicious activity and to report such activity to local law enforcement, which I applaud as I think everyone should take more responsibility for their own safety. At the bottom of the page that lists the things you consider to be suspicious however; I found something very disturbing. "People openly possessing a weapon or dangerous item" Now I’m sure that I don’t have to explain to anyone in CT law enforcement or Homeland security that openly carrying a firearm in the State of CT is perfectly legal per CT general Statutes as long as you hold a valid State Permit to carry a handgun and you are not somewhere that strictly prohibits the carrying of a firearm.

Your website is telling the general population that they should report what is a perfectly legal activity to the police. I obviously understand that your quote is not specific to firearms however; you don’t make the distinction. I know that I as well as the other 170,000 permit holders in CT; some of which like myself choose to open carry where legal, would appreciate the removal of this particular line from your website. It prejudices people against the open carrying of a firearm even though the act of doing so is perfectly within the law. I for one certainly do not wish to be stopped and interrogated by the police every time I carry my handgun as I openly carry my firearm on a regular basis all over the state. Since I saw your ad on WTNH’s website I will also be contacting them through a friend of mine at the station, and I will be asking that they remove the link to your site from their website until such time as this line is removed or changed in your list of suspicious activities.

I think we could all agree that the state would not want to get itself into any kind of legal predicaments that could arise from a law abiding citizen being harassed or possibly arrested for doing something that is well within the law because someone saw on your website that you believe there to be something wrong or illegal about openly carrying a firearm. Especially since the CT Department of Public Safety released a memo last year during an open carry rally at the state capital specifically instructing state and capital police NOT to arrest anyone for simply openly carrying a firearm and that these people should not be detained unless being investigated for another crime(memo attached). There are already several wrongful arrest lawsuits pending against CT police departments over the issue of open carry and I will be forwarding this website link to my attorney in the event that I am reported to law enforcement for exercising my 2nd Amendment Rights. I implore you to take the necessary steps to alter your website to something that doesn’t come across as an attack against a Constitutionally protected and law abiding activity.

Thank you for your time,

Shawn Mitola

Shawn Mitola · Jul 26, 2011

I also sent emails to both of my local state representatives with a copy of the same email. I'll post whatever I hear from them.

Shawn Mitola · Jul 26, 2011

Well I work 3rd shift so I just got up but was pleased to see this in my inbox when I checked my mail.

Hi Mr. Mitola,

While the language you have cited is not intended to infringe on anyone’s rights, we understand your concerns and will be editing the website.

Scott DeVico

Legislative Program Manager/Public Information Officer

Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection

1111 Country Club Road

Middletown, CT 06457

thebigsd · Jul 26, 2011

Shawn Mitola said:
Well I work 3rd shift so I just got up but was pleased to see this in my inbox when I checked my mail.

Well, that was a quick and positive response. Let's see how quickly they update the website. Good catch by the way.

Shawn Mitola · Jul 26, 2011

honestly I was VERY surprised that I got a response so quickly however; like you said lets see how long it takes them to change the site.

Ctclassic · Jul 26, 2011

Nice job Shawn...the ball is in his court now.

---------not sure how that 'angry' icon got on there, sorry-----------

Rich B · Jul 26, 2011

Oh great. You guys are all reporting me right now, aren't you?

Shawn Mitola · Jul 26, 2011

yeah Rich you are clearly a dangerous and suspicious person that needs to be reported to the tip line....

I realize that this is a very small win(If it gets changed) but it's a win none the less and I think I'm just getting started. I waiting to see if I get any more responses to decide what I will do next. I don't have a HUGE amount of free time with 2 kids but I'm not sure now that I've started if I'm gonna be able to stop. Govt needs to be told that we aren't going to go quietly and are not going to allow them to take away our rights without a fight.

Exercise your rights or loose them,

Rich B · Jul 26, 2011

Shawn Mitola said:
I realize that this is a very small win(If it gets changed) but it's a win none the less

Keep on them. You are doing good work letting no lie go unchallenged. We all need to stay vigilant.

Badger Johnson · Jul 26, 2011

I would put a link to the page and somewhere put something about you being a supporter of rights and the 2A.

Otherwise, beside a couple typos it looks OK.

JohnnyO · Jul 26, 2011

Ctclassic said:
OTHER SOMETHINGS THAT MIGHT BE SUSPICIOUS

People wearing oversized clothing for their body type or excessively bulky clothing in hot weather.

So what do you think is the possibility that I would get noticed (and reported) if I walked around a mall with a wearing heavy winter coat during this lovely summer weather?

MKEgal · Jul 26, 2011

JohnO said:
So what do you think is the possibility that I would get noticed (and reported) if I walked around a mall with a wearing heavy winter coat during this lovely summer weather?

Inside? Depends on how observant the mall cops are.
The sheep won't call.

Outside? I'd say you're sure to be reported, 'cause you'll keel over from heat stroke pretty darn quick & hopefully someone will call an ambulance for you.

People wearing oversized clothing for their body type

Brings to mind 2 groups:
Muslims (who are supposed to dress 'modestly'),
& gang bangers (with pants hanging around their knees, advertising sexual preference).
Quite a contrast, eh?

And honestly, I'd rather see someone wearing clothing too large than too small...
Ever browse the "people of Wal-Mart" webpage? :shocker:

Shawn Mitola · Jul 27, 2011

Received this today from Senator Kelly's office, what do you guys think I should do with this?

Mr. Mitola,

Thank you for your e-mail to Senator Kelly regarding the "See something say something" campaign. The Senator appreciates hearing from his constituents about the issues that impact your lives, and he fully supports upholding the rights guaranteed to individuals under the second amendment.

The Dept of Transportation and the Department of Homeland Security are executive branch agencies, and the legislature did not instruct these agencies to run this campaign. Legislators do not have the authority to instruct agencies to add or remove content from their websites. Since the Governor oversees the executive branch and its agencies, I would encourage you to contact him at 860-566-4840 to further discuss your concerns about the campaign.

I know this is not the answer you were hoping to receive, but as long as someone is legally allowed to carry, there will be no impact on those individuals from this campaign.

Please let me know if our office can be of further assistance with any other matter in the future.

Katie
Katie Kenneally
Senate Republican Office
(860)240-8826
katie.kenneally@cga.ct.gov

thebigsd · Jul 27, 2011

Shawn Mitola said:
Received this today from Senator Kelly's office, what do you guys think I should do with this?

To me it comes across as a complete blow-off of your concerns. Legislators have a huge impact in all aspects of any government operation. They could have contacted the governor's office on your behalf, and this is what they should have. A state senator unfortunately has more sway than the average citizen when it comes to getting things done within the government. I would write back and ask them to contact the governor on your behalf, and to request an official statement from the governor. Good luck.

Shawn Mitola · Jul 27, 2011

yeah seemed that way to me as well and I have half a mind to say so when I write back.

:::EDIT::: Here is my reply to Senator Kelly.

Thank you for your reply, your right this was not the response I was hoping for. As a State Senator, Mr Kelly has far more influence with State Government than I do. While your probably right that he can't directly order them to make any changes I would imagine he could make a few calls or have someone do it for him to see what changes could be made.

I could call the Governor and make a similar request of him as I did of you however; it would certainly mean more coming from Senator Kelly than it would coming from me. We elect local representatives so that those persons we elect can "Represent" us. If I'm going to have to call the Governor myself to get something done then why do we need you?

You say that as long as a person is legally allowed to carry that there will be no impact from this campaign. I disagree totally. The act of the Govt telling common citizens to report people to the police for openly carrying a firearm is equivalent to telling them to report someone for wearing a specific color shirt or for driving their car on Sunday. The campaign is causing law abiding citizens to be scrutinized by law enforcement simply for exercising their 2nd Amendment rights, and their rights given to them by CT state law. How would you feel if every time you left your driveway you were stopped by the police and asked to provide proof that you were allowed to drive your car? This is the sort of thing that has already happened to people in CT without the aid of the "See something, Say something" campaign. I could point to several cases where law abiding citizens were detained, questioned, and in fact arrested for openly carrying a firearm. In each case charges were dropped by the District Attorney as having insufficient probable cause to charge the person. This has still caused significant hardship to the individual throughout the entire process. Having the police called on you for doing something that is perfectly legal does in fact have a significant impact on an individual.

This is the kind of thing I am hoping to avoid by having this site changed. Every day that website goes unchanged is more people that have been misinformed as to the legality of openly carrying a firearm. People that have been told by their Govt that there is something wrong or illegal about openly carrying a firearm. This needs to be changed. We have enough issues combating ignorance when it comes to firearms without Govt adding to them.

I would appreciate Senator Kelly taking some time to help see that this issue is addressed.

Thank you,
Shawn Mitola

Shawn Mitola · Jul 28, 2011

Here is the reply from Senator Kelly himself

Shawn,

Thank you for contacting me with your concerns about this campaign. I am going to contact the Commissioner of the Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security on your behalf to make sure that your concerns are heard. My office will follow up with you once that has been done.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if there is anything I can do for you or your family in the future.

Kevin Kelly
State Senator

Rich B · Jul 28, 2011

Good work so far. Don't let them slide.

thebigsd · Jul 28, 2011

Shawn Mitola said:
Here is the reply from Senator Kelly himself

Now that's much better! Let us know when you have confirmation of what he promised. Keep it up!

WOW talk about a blatant attack on Open Carry by Connecticut

Regular Member

Regular Member

Regular Member

Regular Member

Regular Member

Founder's Club Member

Regular Member

Regular Member

Regular Member

Regular Member

Regular Member

Regular Member

New member

Regular Member

Regular Member

Founder's Club Member

Regular Member

Regular Member

Regular Member

Founder's Club Member