Armed citizens have formed a group called the Self-Defense Brigade and have begun patrolling violent neighborhoods in Hartford, Connecticut, but the mayor is reportedly not thrilled with the group’s efforts.
What are the details?
“We’re legally armed and we’re on patrol,” said Cornel Lewis, founder of the SDF brigade. told WVIT-TV. “People from Garden Street came to us and asked for help.”
Image source: YouTube screenshot
the station said Garden Street has seen an uptick in gun violence, including a double homicide in February, prompting a push for armed civilian patrols..
Organizers told WVIT that group members legally carry them as they walk through violent areas of the city.
The department said the Self-Defense Force Brigade was on patrol Saturday, including cleaning Garden Street in Hartford’s North End.
Image source: YouTube screenshot
Image source: YouTube screenshot
“It was important for us to come out here because we believe we have to keep our communities safe and keep our communities clean,” Marcus Long of Hartford told WVIT. Ta. [to] Clean the area and pick up trash. ”
Image source: YouTube screenshot
The department noted that the group members did not appear to be engaging in open carry, which is prohibited in Connecticut. Rather, organizers previously told WVIT that armed patrol members are licensed and carry concealed weapons.
“We are not a vigilante group. We are a group of disciplined and trained people,” Lewis told the station. We go to the shooting range. ”
The brigade also met to discuss gun rights, as well as how to obtain permits and safe gun carrying, personal use and storage practices, WVIT said.
Lewis added to the department that the brigade will conduct patrols several times a week. So it’s not a one-time thing. It will be done on a consistent basis. ”
Image source: YouTube screenshot
Organizers have touted the need for the patrols and say they plan to expand them to other areas of the city, but WVIT said the effort is facing challenges. Anti-violence groups and protesters including Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam also attended..
“Our community has experienced a lot of pain and trauma, and what we need is the hard work of those who love this city to help heal that pain,” the mayor said of the Self-Defense Force Brigade, according to the department. ”, he wrote.
The Democratic mayor added to WVIT that Hartford doesn’t need people walking the streets with guns and taking the law into their own hands.
Armed citizen patrols begin in Hartford amid concerns of violenceyoutube.be
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