Weapons registry overdue for vetting

The deadly weapons offender registry was not vetted appropriately in those raw months after the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre.

While the rest of then-Gov. Dannel Malloy’s landmark gun control legislation continues to spark debate, the registry was an asterisk on the bill. Its existence is a tool for police, enforced by judges and unknown to most Connecticut residents.

Hearst Connecticut Media reporter and editor Ken Dixon was curious about the list and recently obtained a stealth copy of it. Even without names, the numbers offer a narrative of our cities and towns: Bridgeport (293), New Haven (274), Norwalk (29), Stamford, (28), Danbury (10), Greenwich (5), Darien (1), New Canaan (0).

The list come into existence quietly in 2013, but there will certainly be a lot of noise in any discourse on whether it should become public.

In its current state, we tilt toward releasing it, but with the consideration it deserves. Malloy represents two sides of the potential dialogue, having scripted his “Second Chance Society” platform to champion a more forgiving criminal justice system.

The framework of the debate is apparent in the exclusive story we published Sunday, and responses to it. American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut Executive Director David McGuire says revealing it would be an invasion of policy.

Senate Minority Leader Len Fasano, R-North Haven, meanwhile, reasons that it should be made public, like other registries. It is being compared with the list of convicted sex offenders, which is available in a digital public database.

We don’t buy that such lists should be left solely in the hands of law enforcement. Some school districts, for example, do somersaults to plot out bus stops to avoid corners near registered sex offenders.

Concerns over polarization and potential vigilantism have merit, but are outweighed by the rights of parents to shield their children.

State Rep. Vin Candelora, R-North Branford, argues that releasing the list could backfire by leading to plea bargains for lesser offenses to avoid being slapped with the Scarlet Letter the list represents.

That logic only points to other flaws in the criminal justice system. A criminal trying to avoid the list only offers a persuasive argument for its existence. The list also expires after five years, so it is not a lifetime tattoo of shame.

The media has routine experience witnessing the impact of listing names as a potential deterrent. For generations, names have appeared in newspapers after arrests. This are not convictions, but the information is public and we’ve heard from many who would prefer their activities be kept private.

A discourse over releasing the deadly weapons offender registry requires nuance. The public hearing that should have been held seven years ago should finally take place.

While they are at it, lawmakers should revisit the sex offender registry, which unfairly stigmatizes all convicted offenders as committing equal crimes.

It’s time to give the weapons registry the consideration it should have gotten seven years ago.

We don’t buy that such lists should be left solely in the hands of law enforcement. Some school districts, for example, do somersaults to plot out bus stops to avoid corners near registered sex offenders.