Judge unafraid to take on bigs
THE CONNECTICUT judge entrusted with a potentially groundbreaking decision on gun manufacturers is a maverick magistrate who is not afraid to buck the establishment.
That’s what Judge Barbara Bellis (above) did two years ago when she reversed the state Board of Education and Bridgeport’ s mayor, ruling that the city’s school superintendent, Paul Vallas, wasn’t qualified for the job.
Families of victims killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre are hoping she can be just as tough with the company behind some of the most powerful weapons in the world.
If Bell is grants the families’ wish, she would ultimately decide if gunmakers are in part responsible for crimes committed with their weapons.