As parts of the state see an increase in gun violence, Senator Chris Murphy plans on addressing President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee, and the possible impact on gun safety laws.
Sen. Murphy will be joined by other advocates of gun violence prevention including groups like Mothers United Against Violence, Newtown Action Alliance, and Connecticut Against Gun Violence.
The press conference is expected to begin at 10 a.m.
Sen. Murphy had already voiced a level of concern on SCOTUS nominee Amy Coney Barrett on his Twitter page during her nomination hearings in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Senator Richard Blumenthal serves on the committee and also has voiced his concerns.
The presser comes as areas of the state are seeing an increase in gun violence.
On Wednesday, there were at least three shootings and several more last weekend. The violence is leaving city leaders to try and understand why they are seeing the uptick.
September data from the Hartford Police Department showed a 43 percent increase in shootings compared to last year.
Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin addressed these latest incidents saying the pandemic has played a role in the violence.
But the Hartford Police Union said criminals are acting more brazen due to the lack of proactive policing. They added that some officers are taking a step back due to the recent police accountability bill signed by Governor Ned Lamont.
"[The bill] is not allowing us to do our jobs, to be proactive police officers," said Officer Anthony Fegaldi. "If you don't have that element in your community, sometimes you can see some lawlessness as we're seeing right now."
"To suggest the violence we are seeing because the men and women of the Hartford Police Department aren't doing their job does a disservice to those who are out there working hard every day," Mayor Bronin said.
Mayor Bronin also said that the police department has made great strides when it comes to solving homicides and taking illegal guns off the street, and argues that doesn’t show a police department who is taking a back seat.
Thursday morning, Hartford police said two felons are facing illegal possession of firearm charges after a seizure of two handguns and narcotics.
Hartford is not the only part of Connecticut seeing an increase in violence.
Over the summer, the New Haven Police Department had called on the public to help them curb the gun violence in the city. The call to action came after the city saw five shootings in 24 hours.
New Haven Police Chief Otoniel Reyes said the city hadn't seen the current level of violence since 2011, and it was putting a strain on officers.
In August, New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker announced the first steps to creating a Community Crisis Response team. The Crisis Response team would be made up of trained experts in harm reduction, mental health, substance abuse, and other social support responses.
According to city officials, over 7,000 calls a week come into the New Haven Public Safety Call Center and only about 2,000 of those are emergencies. Officials said the rest of the calls would be better suited for this community crisis response team.
