Gun Manufacturer Moving Out Of CT Facility

NEW BRITAIN, CT — Stag Arms announced that it has decided to move out its New Britain facility. "The location of Stag’s new headquarters has not been finalized but the Board has narrowed down the options to a short list of vibrant communities where there is significant support for the firearms industry," the company said in a statement.

The company was founded in 2003 and sells pistols, rifles and accessory parts. The board of directors plans to finalize the location of its new headquarters in the next few months and begin the relocation officers.

"The pieces are in place and we are ready to transition production and fulfillment operations immediately from a narrow facility-based approach in New Britain to a distributed eco-system," said Stag Arms President Anthony Ash.

New Britain Mayor Erin Stewart said the news wasn't a surprise and that the city has known for years that the company has been courted by other states after Connecticut passed stricter gun laws.

Firearm manufacturer PTR Industries left Connecticut for South Carolina in 2013 after the state passed stricter gun laws.

Stag Arms and its former owner and president Mark Malkowski were fined in 2016 for violating federal firearm laws. It was the first time a major firearms manufacturer was convicted of a felony and had its license revoked, which forced the company to be sold to new owners.

Then-U.S. Attorney Deirdre Daly said the company at the time had displayed systemic disregard for federal firearm regulations and was unable to account for hundreds of semiautomatic rifles and possessed over 60 unregistered machine guns.

New Gun Laws Approved In CT

Joined by advocates and legislators at the State Capitol, Gov. Ned Lamont Friday held a bill signing ceremony to commemorate the passage of two new laws that his office says will enhance gun safety in Connecticut, including the banning of untraceable “ghost guns” and improving the storage of firearms in motor vehicles.

Ghost guns are firearms that do not have serial numbers, most commonly because they are sold in parts that can be assembled at home, and thus are not required by current law to have a serial number. They are not recorded as a gun sale, making them impossible to trace if the firearm is used in a crime. Public Act 19-6, will prohibit anyone from manufacturing a firearm without subsequently obtaining and engraving or permanently affixing on it a unique serial number or other identification mark provided by the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection.

The second bill, Public Act 19-7, attempts to address the rising numbers of gun thefts from motor vehicles that cities around the country have been experiencing in recent years. The law prohibits storing a pistol in an unattended motor vehicle unless that pistol is in the trunk, a locked glove box, or a locked safe. It makes first-time offenses a class A misdemeanor and subsequent offenses a class D felony. Law enforcement and certain security personnel receive are exempt from these requirements.

“The overwhelming majority of Connecticut residents want us to close the gaping loopholes that allow guns to get into the wrong hands, and any measure that encourages safe gun storage to help keep children, residents, and families safe is an action I will always support,” Governor Lamont said in a statement. “But I must stress – gun violence prevention laws only go so far without the support of our federal government. In our country, we have a patchwork of gun laws in each individual state – and as they say, we are only as strong as our weakest link. For the safety of our communities, we must demand federal action on this issue.”

Lamont thanked the work of Judiciary co-chairs State Senator Gary Winfield and State Representative Steven Stafstrom, as well as legislative leadership and advocacy groups who whose voices helped lead passage of these bills.

“With the passage of these two measures the State of Connecticut continues to lead the nation on gun safety,” Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz said. “Research shows that states with strong gun safety laws have fewer deaths from gun violence. We are making the necessary strides in protecting our citizens and preventing gun violence. We hope that our stand here will implore other states – and even the federal government – to act as we have done and make these gun violence prevention laws the standard everywhere.”

“We applaud Governor Lamont for making history in Connecticut by signing three necessary gun violence prevention bills into law,” Jeremy Stein, Executive Director of CT Against Gun Violence, said in a news release. “We thank the governor, our coalition partners and volunteers for their dedication to fighting for a safer Connecticut. We are proud that Connecticut continues to lead the way with strong gun laws that will reduce gun violence and save lives.”

Both of the new laws take effect October 1, 2019.