West Hartford Interview Do/Don'ts

I found this site after looking around KIX's ct pistol permit issues website and have been lurking for the past week. I finally decided it's time to get the process started and take full advantage of my 2nd ammenent right.

As such, I have an interview set up for next week. It is at 8:45am which is anything less than convenient for someone that works 8-5 but that is the only time they do interviews. I will be submitting only the required CT state form and not their ridiculous forms so I will let people know how it goes.

My question is what should I expect from the interview besides making sure I'm not a whacko? What questions should I be ready to answer and what are things I shouldn't say besides the super obvious? I don't want to give any more chances to draw this process out seeing that I am dealing with a tough town already.

Any insight or tips will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

I am not sure if there are any people who can advise on the specifics of the interview (hopefully someone can though).

However, if it were me, I would be polite and professional, but I would say as little as possible and just answer 'yes' or 'no' to their questions.
I have a large issue with an issuing authority utilizing someone who is trained in interrogations treating a law abiding citizen like a criminal and trying to dig for a reason to deny them their human right to self defense.

You will likely get alternate advice here (perhaps for good reason), but I have learned from enough police encounters the bare minimum is necessary and the only thing you can give them by talking is more ammunition against yourself. That includes if you have nothing to hide.

One thing I will ask is if you are able to record the interview (no consent from the officer is needed), that would be helpful for everyone to know what they put people through. At the very least, if you can try and write their questions down while they are still fresh, that could be interesting.


Remember, it is their obligation to perform an investigation to find a reason to deny you, not approve you. They will spin it the other way around if they get the chance, but lacking any question of suitability or any criminal history in the FBI report, they have to issue it to you. If you are the clean person most people who apply are, you only have something to lose by giving them information.

What Rich said is spot on.

The problem I see at BFPE hearings are people that talk TOO MUCH. Even if it is a non-issue. If you say it wrong or it gets misinterpreted, BANG - you miss out on suitability and need to wait for a hearing to clear up the mess.

Recording so you have list of questions afterward is a good thing. I was thinking of compiling a list of those sort of questions for the site. If you follow up with me, that can be a start.

Kinda along the lines of what Rich was saying about their obligation to investigate/deny. That's just it. You can answer questions brief and to the point. It's their job to "test" your suitability, not your job to help them out. That is EXACTLY why all the extra material is NOT required by state law. If you do not sigh that release form (I would in NO WAY sign that form personally) I can almost guarantee you will need a BFPE hearing. I'd be curious to see how that goes.

Remember, at sixty days, you can contact the board and file your appeal. Don't snooze on the sixty day mark, it will only hold you up longer. Make sure that paperwork says you did not supply additional information not required under law

Any questions, feel free to drop me a note and post here. Plenty of folks to help out with the issues.

Jonathan

Know the law and know when you have standing to file an appeal


To all Permit Applicants who are being misled by local issuing authorities or others!!

Regardless of what you read on this message board, the law is the law.

WITHOUT QUESTION, Individuals have STANDING to file their appeal regarding DENIALS with the Board of Firearms Permit Examiners at various times during the application process.

The law CLEARLY mandates action on the part of issuing authorities, and the current Secretary of the Board along with other members of the board knows this.

If the local issuing authority does not approve or deny within "ONE WEEK" of receiving the results of a National Criminal History Background Check, it is considered for appeal purposes to be a DENIAL.


Here is a sample of what you may send to the board as part of any appeal based on time violations.

Date: _____________

To: The Board of Firearms Permit Examiners
505 Hudson Street
Hartford, CT. 06106

Re: Appeal and request for expedited hearing

As of this date, I have not according to State Statute, been properly notified regarding the approval or denial of my application for a Connecticut Permit to Carry a Pistol or Revolver by my Local Issuing Authority.

I consider the failure of the issuing authority to adhere to the mandated times contained in the Connecticut General Statutes to be a denial of my application AT THIS TIME.

As part of my appeal to the Board of Firearms Permit Examiners, I would like the board to know that I submitted to my local issuing authority, either by hand delivery or U.S. Mail, the following required documentation which I believe constitutes a “SUFFICIENT APPLICATION”:

1. A properly completed APPLICATION for a Permit to Carry Pistols and Revolvers. (DPS form 799)
2. Evidence of successful completion of a State approved Pistol Safety course.
3. Evidence of “positive identification required by the State Police Bureau of Identification or the Federal Bureau of Investigation”.
4. A set of fingerprints taken by the issuing authority or a recognized Connecticut law enforcement agency.
5. A check to cover the National Criminal History Records Check.
6. A check to cover the State Criminal History Records Check.
7. A check to cover the INITIAL FEES for the Temporary and 5 year permit.

Phone number to verify whether or not the FBI's CJIS has completed the paid for National Criminal History Records Check is: CJIS Customer Service Group at (304) 625-5590.

To add to what Ed is saying, there is also a BFPE form letter that is pretty clear and should be a piece of cake to fill out.

http://www.ct.gov/bfpe/cwp/view.asp?a=1253&Q=458262

File the appeal as soon as you have a case. Don't wait for arbitrary or imagined limits.

KIX said:

Remember, at sixty days, you can contact the board and file your appeal. Don't snooze on the sixty day mark, it will only hold you up longer. Make sure that paperwork says you did not supply additional information not required under law

Click to expand...

Where are we getting sixty days from now?

I'm not going there again.

Jonathan

Rich B said:

I have a large issue with an issuing authority utilizing someone who is trained in interrogations treating a law abiding citizen like a criminal and trying to dig for a reason to deny them their human right to self defense.

Click to expand...

I mentioned this recently on my site..... one town (forgot which one at the moment) has you contact XYZ officer in "Criminal Investigations" or something similar.

Talk about trying to create a self imposed elevated state!

Jonathan

More research on the Permit Application process

From an OLR

http://www.cga.ct.gov/2009/rpt/2009-R-0344.htm

Table 1: Criminal History Check Requirements




In part





Example:

“If such application form is not supplied within the time limits required by this section, the request therefor shall constitute a sufficient application.”

The applicant may have their fingerprints taken, (paper copy), by the issuing authority or any law enforcement agency to complete and become part of the submitted “sufficient application”.

The only requirement is “Positive Identification” of the applicant which complies with “any other method of positive identification required by the State Police Bureau of Identification or the Federal Bureau of Investigation.”

Day One - Applicant submits “a sufficient application” as required.
Delivery is verified and applicant possesses copies of everything submitted together with verification of delivery.

Day Five – The request for a State and Federal Criminal History Record Check must be forwarded, “The local authority shall record the date the fingerprints were taken in the applicant's file and, within five business days of such date, shall forward such fingerprints or other positive identifying information to the State Police Bureau of Identification which shall conduct criminal history records checks in accordance with section 29-17a.

Day Six – Call issuing authority to verify that request and prints have been properly forwarded as required by law and the method they were sent to SPBI.

Days six through ten - A Reasonable amount of time for request to arrive at SPBI, (State Police Bureau of Identification).

Days eleven to Fourteen – the time it should take for SPBI to “LIVE SCAN” the paper prints into the system to the CJIS computer background system. (The FBI’s CJIS in West Virginia does not accept paper fingerprints from SPBI for Pistol Permit Applicants).

Days Fourteen to Sixteen – The FBI’s CJIS system returns Live Scan results electronically back to SPBI within 48 hours unless there is some type of glitch.

Days Sixteen to Twenty – A reasonable amount of time for SPBI to get the National and State Criminal History results returned and into the possession of the requesting local issuing authority.

Days Twenty eight or later – The applicant contacts the local issuing authority, SPBI and the FBI’s CJIS system to obtain and verify the specific dates that requests, (with or without prints), were made and received by each.

All applicants should be aware of the fact that since October 1, 2009, the state has imposed a $50.00 fee for conducting State Criminal History Records Checks on the theory that the applicants are the ones requesting the records check.

Since the applicant is (according to current SPBI policy), the requesting party, (I don’t agree), and as such, they are entitled to know the specifics regarding the services they have paid for. This would include the various dates in question.

The FBI’s CJIS system may be called to verify the date on which the National Criminal History Record Check was conducted and returned to the submitting agency. This is done electronically without the dealys associated with using the U.S. Postal Service.


FINGERPRINTS ARE NOT MANDATORY TO HAVE A STATE OR NATIONAL CRIMINAL HISTORY RECCORDS CHECK COMPLETED

Sec. 29-14. Duties of bureau. Said bureau shall, on the receipt of any such identification card, immediately cause the files to be examined and shall promptly return to the police department or peace officer submitting such identification card a true transcript of the record of previous crimes committed by the person described on each such identification card, and said bureau shall assist police and prosecuting officials in the preparation and distribution of circulars relative to fugitives when so requested. When an arrest is made by an officer of a police department or other peace officer who is not equipped with necessary paraphernalia or skilled in the art of taking fingerprints and proper descriptions of criminals, he may call on the State Police Bureau of Identification or on the nearest state police station for assistance and any officer or officers so called shall render such assistance immediately.

Sec. 29-17a. Criminal history records checks. Procedure. Fees. (a) If a criminal history records check is required pursuant to any provision of the general statutes, such check shall be requested from the State Police Bureau of Identification and shall be applicable to the individual identified in the request. The requesting party shall arrange for the fingerprinting of the individual or for conducting any other method of positive identification required by the State Police Bureau of Identification and, if a national criminal history records check is requested, by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The fingerprints or other positive identifying information shall be forwarded to the State Police Bureau of Identification which shall conduct a state criminal history records check. If a national criminal history records check is requested, the State Police Bureau of Identification shall submit the fingerprints or other positive identifying information to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for a national criminal history records check, unless the Federal Bureau of Investigation permits direct submission of the fingerprints or other positive identifying information by the requesting party.

(b) The Commissioner of Public Safety may charge fees for conducting criminal history background checks as follows:

(1) Except as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection, for a person requesting (A) a state criminal history records check, the fee charged by the Department of Public Safety for performing such check, and (B) a national criminal history records check, the fee charged by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for performing such check.

(2) For a state agency requesting a national criminal history records check of a person, the fee charged by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for performing such check. The state agency shall reimburse the Department of Public Safety for such cost. Unless otherwise provided by the provision of the general statutes requiring the criminal history records check, the state agency may charge the person a fee equal to the amount paid by the state agency under this subdivision.

(c) The Commissioner of Public Safety may provide an expedited service for persons requesting criminal history records checks in accordance with this section. Such expedited service shall include making the results of such records checks available to the requesting party through the Internet. The commissioner may enter into a contract with any person, firm or corporation to establish and administer such expedited service. The commissioner shall charge, in addition to the fees charged pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, a fee of fifty dollars for each expedited criminal history record check provided. The fee charged pursuant to subsection (b) of this section and the expedited service fee charged pursuant to this subsection shall be paid by the requesting party in such manner as may be required by the commissioner.

Sec. 29-17c. Collection of fingerprints by municipal police department or Division of State Police. Fees. (a) No employee of a municipal police department or the Division of State Police within the Department of Public Safety shall refuse to collect the fingerprints of a person requesting such fingerprinting for the purposes of a criminal history records check in accordance with section 29-17a, or other noncriminal purposes, provided (1) such employee's duties include fingerprint collection, and (2) the person requesting such fingerprinting works or resides in the municipality where such department or division is located.

(b) The provisions of this section shall not be construed to prohibit a municipality from establishing a limited period of hours during which such fingerprints may be collected.

(c) A municipality may charge a reasonable fee for collecting fingerprints under this section. If a municipality submits fingerprints electronically to the Department of Public Safety, such municipality shall charge the person from whom the fingerprints were collected all applicable state or federal fees and shall forward such fees, monthly, to said department.

http://211ct.org/InformationLibrary/Documents/Fingerprinting_Criminal Conviction Record Check fj.asp

FINGERPRINTING/CRIMINAL CONVICTION RECORD CHECK-CONNECTICUT
The material provided on the 211 eLibrary is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to be and should not be construed as legal advice.

WHAT IS A CRIMINAL CONVICTION RECORD CHECK?
Also known as a criminal background check or criminal history, a criminal conviction record check is a search of an individual’s history of any convictions under Connecticut law for felony, misdemeanor, and motor vehicle convictions.


WHAT INFORMATION IS NEEDED TO CONDUCT A RECORD CHECK?
Name and date of birth are needed; a Social Security number will also help in the search.

WHAT AGENCY DOES THE CONNECTICUT CRIMINAL CONVICTION RECORD CHECK?
The Department of Public Safety's Division of State Police - Bureau of Identification (SPBI) conducts all criminal conviction record checks for convictions under Connecticut law. Local police departments will refer all requests to this agency.

WHAT PROFESSIONS REQUIRE FINGERPRINTING AND A CRIMINAL CONVICTION RECORD CHECK?

Required:
Criminal record checks and fingerprinting are required of people seeking the following types of employment, see Connecticut Office of Legislative Research (OLR) Report, 2009-R-0344

Law enforcement
Private investigator
Security guard
Bondsmen
Firefighter
Child daycare workers
School teachers
School employees who will work with children
Connecticut Department of Children and Families employees who will work with children
Employees of the Connecticut Division of Special Revenue
Corporation officials

Individuals who want a pistol permit, dangerous weapon permit, assault weapon permit, or a Public Service License
Optional:

Private employers have the discretion to require applicants to have fingerprinting and criminal record checks

Anyone can request a Connecticut criminal conviction record check of themselves or another person.

HOW DO YOU REQUEST A CRIMINAL CONVICTION RECORD CHECK?
On the SPBI website, you can print a copy of DPS-846-C Form "State Police Bureau of Identification Request", or you may call SPBI and request the form be mailed to you. Complete the form and return it BY U.S. MAIL ONLY, with a check for $50.00 per each person you want a history on. The bureau will return the results to you by U.S. MAIL ONLY.

HOW DO YOU HAVE FINGERPRINTING DONE?
Usually, the employer will make arrangements for applicants to be fingerprinted. If the employer does not take care of this, job applicants can contact SPBI, or the local police, for information on how to have their fingerprints taken and checked.

TO FIND PROVIDERS IN CONNECTICUT'S COMMUNITY RESOURCES DATABASE: Search by service name: Employment Related Fingerprinting
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SOURCES: Department of Public Safety, Division of State Police, Bureau of Identification
Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research Report #2009-R-0344
PREPARED BY: 211/kq
CONTENT LAST REVIEWED: September2011

In simple terms, to the OP, you don't even need to submit to the interview.

However, the interview is a perfect time to submit your application. I'd simply hand the packet to the officer, concisely state that an interview isn't necessary per CT Statute, thank him for his time and leave.

Thats me.

If you do go ahead with the interview, I just want to clarify one thing Rich said. Not only do you not need the officers permission to record, You don't even need to let him know you are recording. So either way, have a recorder going when you go into the PD. (Remember, he's recording you already, you're just making a copy for yourself.)

If you intend to simply drop off the packet and NOT engage the officer in conversation then you should REALLY be recording, simply because the officer is likely to lie to you about the requirement for an interview, which would be really helpful in fron t of the BFPE.

Don

To anyone from West Hartford, who will be getting a Pistol Permit any time soon. If you agree to simply submit the application per CT statutes, I will provide you with a private NRA Basic Handgun class, necessary for the permit application, for Free. (Just reimburse me for ammo costs or provide ammo) You need to agree that you will not submit to their additional requirements and be willing to take your case to the BFPE.

dcmdon said:

To anyone from West Hartford, who will be getting a Pistol Permit any time soon. If you agree to simply submit the application per CT statutes, I will provide you with a private NRA Basic Handgun class, necessary for the permit application, for Free. (Just reimburse me for ammo costs or provide ammo) You need to agree that you will not submit to their additional requirements and be willing to take your case to the BFPE.

Click to expand...

I'm offering the same thing in Hartford to a few people. Waiting to hear back from 'em to coordinate a class.

As long as they are willing to follow the law and not cave in to the fiefdom's demands...... I'm willing to help all I can.

Jonathan

dcmdon said:

If you do go ahead with the interview, I just want to clarify one thing Rich said. Not only do you not need the officers permission to record, You don't even need to let him know you are recording. So either way, have a recorder going when you go into the PD. (Remember, he's recording you already, you're just making a copy for yourself.)

Click to expand...

I agree 100%. If my comment hinted that you might not be able to, it is because I have dealt with two departments who were abusive to this right and would not allow me to record what was going on around me when in their offices. In one case, a search and thorough metal detector screening was done as well.

Not a big deal, nothing illegal, but might not allow the recorder in. In which case, I would almost certainly turn down the interview.

Which is why I love the apps that let me record on my phone!

Jonathan

KIX said:

As long as they are willing to follow the law and not cave in to the fiefdom's demands......

Click to expand...

Does this include following the 5 day/1 week rules in the statutes and not following the police lies of 8 weeks being state law?

KIX said:

Which is why I love the apps that let me record on my phone!

Jonathan

Click to expand...

They don't allow phones in either. I also had my belt confiscated.

Rich B said:

Does this include following the 5 day/1 week rules in the statutes and not following the police lies of 8 weeks being state law?

Click to expand...

Don't even get me started........

Jonathan

Rich B said:

They don't allow phones in either. I also had my belt confiscated.

Click to expand...

Ahhh, so they treated you like a suicidal criminal!

Jonathan

KIX said:

Don't even get me started........

Jonathan

Click to expand...

On?

Rich B said:

On?

Click to expand...

At least we can carry the debate on another thread over hijacking this one (not like it's been done enough).

For the record, Ed has asked me to give him a call, and I will (server meltdown). However..... nothing above that Ed wrote supports the argument of the timeline. He addressed an OLR report on fingerprinting and then followed it up with info on alternate criminal records checks.

But, to be fair, let's at least start another topic.

Jonathan

KIX said:

But, to be fair, let's at least start another topic.

Click to expand...

Ask and ye shall receive:

http://forum.opencarry.org/forums/showthread.php?96274-Permit-application-deadlines