Connecticut governor signs sweeping gun control legislation
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E-mail Xinhua, April 5, 2013
The governor of the U.S. state of Connecticut, Dannel Malloy, on Thursday signed a strict and sweeping gun control legislation that includes certain weapon bans, nearly four months after a shooting massacre at a local elementary school left 20 children and 6 educators dead.
Malloy signed the comprehensive gun bill into law after both houses of the Connecticut legislature passed part of it, believed to be the strictest in the nation, on Wednesday night and early Thursday morning.
Calling it "a profoundly emotional day," Malloy said at the signing ceremony that the state has come together "in a way that relatively few places in our nation have demonstrated an ability to do."
The governor also stressed that the passing and signing of the legislation did not "mark the end of our efforts" to reduce gun violence.
The legislation adds more than 100 guns to the state's list of banned assault weapons, limits the capacity of ammunition magazines to 10 rounds, and bans armor-piercing bullets. The measures also include background checks for all sales of firearms, and took effect immediately after the governor's signature.
Connecticut has joined Colorado and New York in passing major gun control legislation in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting that occurred last December in Newtown, Connecticut.
The tragedy shocked the United States and renewed the gun control debate nationwide in the past months. President Barack Obama is currently trying to build momentum for gun control legislation at the national level through a series of public events, including delivering a high-profile speech in Connecticut next week. Democrats in the U.S. Senate are expected to bring up a comprehensive gun violence reduction bill later this month.
