Law Prof: Lawmakers did not Abide by Statute for Gun Bill

Our Face the State interview last month with attorney and private investigator Peter Sachs garnered quite a bit of attention from Channel 3 viewers and well beyond. Sachs contended state lawmakers violated state statute and took short cuts in passing the law, which Sachs argued rendered the new law invalid. After the interview aired no lawmaker came out to refute Sachs’ allegations. So what gives? Was Sachs right? And if he is, is the law invalid?

We asked a few lawmakers and legislative workers about that, and several conceded Sachs had a point, but that no court would rule against a legislature and governor, so we decided to put a legal mind on the case. On our request, Quinnipiac University law professor William Dunlap was provided to us by the college to take a look at the Sachs claims.

In an interview set to air this Sunday on Face the State on WFSB Channel 3, Professor Dunlap offered a legal opinion on the case, and found Sachs’ argument has quite a bit of merit, but, there’s a big but.

Dunlap says it does appear state lawmakers did in fact, not follow the rules set forth by the statuen they passed the gun law.
“It is clear the legislature did not follow the procedures that are laid down in the general statute..” but Dunlap said it is unlikely a court would take up a challenge to the new law based on this argument. Dunlap did say the court could be forced to examine the issue.
“if someone were to be convicted under this law, and then challenge its legitimacy, then the court might have to take up the issue.” But again, Dunlap believes even if this were to happen, the court would not rule the law was invalid because it is not a crime for lawmakers not to follow the procedures of a statute.

No doubt this a complicated argument, but one we’ll be hearing about it as challenges to the gun law appear. Also joining us in this discussion is State Senator Joe Markley, a Republican who voiced concerns about the way the law was passed.

You can watch the entire discussion with Professor Dunlap and Senator Markley right here:

http://www.wfsb.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=8846315

watch the interview with Peter Sachs right here:

http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2013/04/12/lawyer-new-connecticut-gun-law-not-legal/

Also today, Congressman Jim Himes: http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2013/05/03/himes-marathon-bombing-hearings-likely/

Our flashback today is about campaign ’98: http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2013/05/03/face-the-state-flashback-the-pay-raise-debate-of-1998/

And Oprah: http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2013/05/03/my-interview-with-oprah/

Hartford Whalers Hat Featured in Prime Time

We’ve seen gear sporting our favorite NHL logo on the big screen, and now it has shown up on the small screen. The familiar green, white and blue was seen on a hat worn by a character on the television show, “Scandal.” This aired nearly 16 years to the day, our beloved Hartford Whalers left Connecticut.

This screen shot was sent to me by an eagle-eyed Whalers fan in Los Angeles, Mike Long. Mike worked as an associate producer here at WFSB about 20 years ago, when our studios and the home of the Whale were separated by only a few blocks.

Various reports have Whalers paraphernalia among the best selling of NHL teams past and present. The melded H and W have been spotted being worn by Megan Fox, Adam Sandler, Jason Bay, Brian Cashman and the list goes on. Read about all of that in these links below.

Adam Sandler

http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2013/04/08/j-geils-in-new-adam-sandler-movie-but-what-about-hartford-whalers-shirt/

Megan Fox

http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2010/07/01/hartford-whalers-gear-going-hollywood/

Jason Bay

http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2012/05/17/mets-slugger-showing-whalers-love/

Brian Cashman

http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2011/12/14/yankees-gm-a-hartford-whalers-fan/

Other Whalers stories:

Watch the 1986 Whalers parade and Governor Malloy talking about hockey in Hartford

http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/tag/1986-hartford-whalers-parade/

Duffle bag

http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2010/07/12/a-great-hartford-whalers-find/

Former Whalers owner Richard Gordon

http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2011/12/09/ex-whalers-owner-gordon-bring-back-the-bishops/

Whalers Fans in Chicago

http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2011/06/23/hartford-whalers-stuff-in-chicago/

John Buccigross on Whalers

http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2012/02/24/espns-buccigross-on-nhl-return-to-hartford/

Whalers gear at Bradley Airport

http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2011/01/28/hartford-whalers-gear-arrives-at-bradley-airport/

in Rhode Island, too

http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2012/07/30/connecticut-getting-some-rhody-love/

Face the State Flashback: the Gun Control Debate of ’93

In this week’s Face the State flashback we take you back to 1993 when lawmakers received death threats during the legislative debate over gun control. Governor Weicker signed the assault weapons ban into law, but it did not come easy.

In the report from the archives you’ll see Sunday, Channel 3′s Duby McDowell report on the final day of the ’93 legislative session which produced a host of new laws, in addition to gun control Look for appearances by John Larson, William Aniskovich, Nancy Wyman and others. Wyman talks about a new law that she hoped would help her quit smoking. It worked.

You can watch the entire flashback this Sunday morning at 11 on Face the State, only on WFSB Channel 3.

Watch an attorney argue there will be a legal fight over the legality of the new control law:

http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2013/04/12/lawyer-new-connecticut-gun-law-not-legal/

Watch the gun control debate of 1968: http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2013/04/12/face-the-state-flashback-gun-control-in-1968/

Cafero’s Malloy Report Card: C- to D

The state Democratic party has been focusing its attention on 2010 Republican gubernatorial nominee Tom Foley, but it is only a matter of time before other candidates enter the 2014 race for governor. During a taping of Face the State set to air this Sunday, one of those potential candidates told me he will make a decision on running later this spring.

House Minority Leader Larry Cafero said sometime after the end of the legislative session on June 4th, he will decide whether to form an exploratory committee. The Norwalk Republican talked at length about Ambassador Foley, and about Governor Malloy, saying the report card on the governor is not good. I asked Cafero to grade the governor and he responded, “C- to a D.”

This Sunday we also have analysis from the Hartford Courant’s Chris Keating, and some Republican commentary on the race from William Landers of the conservative blog, Ameriborn News.

You can watch the entire conversation below:

Watch Cafero http://www.wfsb.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=8814519

Watch Keating and Landers http://www.wfsb.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=8814532

Should Connecticut Celebrate Its History by Honoring Its Native Son President?

Only one U.S. president was born in Connecticut, yet you would be hard-pressed to find any plaque, monument or historic site commemorating that. As our state moves forward with its tourism campaign, honoring the only Constitution State native to occupy the White House is something to consider.

New Haven is the birthplace of the nation’s 43rd president. Look at the roster of presidents, and Connecticut appears once, next to the name of George W. Bush. Democrats in this blue state cringe at that, but this isn’t about politics, it is about history. We all know Bush moved to Texas at a young age, and always considered himself a Texan, but he can’t change the fact he is a native nutmegger. Says so in his passport. Of course, it didn’t help him in 2000 and 2004 when he lost our state in the presidential elections.

I’m a big fan of presidential history, and growing up in Norwood, Massachusetts we had plenty of it to enjoy. The birthplace of John F. Kennedy is in Brookline, his library in Dorchester, and the birthplaces of John Adams and John Quincy Adams in nearby Quincy. I even remember visiting the summer home of Grover Cleveland in Bourne before it burned to the ground in the 1970s. Hammersmith Farm in Newport, Rhode Island was a big attraction as a Kennedy summer White House before it was sold to a private buyer. It’s not far from the Eisenhower House, where Dwight Eisenhower spent some summer vacations.

When I lived in Michigan I visited the Gerald Ford Museum in Grand Rapids several times. W hile working as an anchor in Rockford, Illinois, I toured another presidential site, the Ronald Reagan boyhood home in Dixon, and even asked the former president a few questions in his backyard. Read about that here: http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2011/04/07/my-ronald-reagan-exclusive/

Presidential libraries and historic sites like the ones I mentioned and ones in Arkansas, Florida and elsewhere are huge tourist attractions, and the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum opening this week in Dallas, Texas should be no exception. The cost to build it was a quarter of billion dollars, and it created hundreds of jobs in construction and a smaller number for library staff. I can’t help but think, “what if?”

What if the library had been built in New Haven? It really isn’t that far-fetched. After a president is re-elected, discussion begins on where to put the presidential library. There is now debate as to where President Obama’s library will go and both Chicago and Honolulu want it. For President Bush, Texas seemed the obvious choice, but it already has two presidential libraries for the first President Bush and Lyndon Johnson. Why not Connecticut?

Not only was Bush was born here, but his father grew up in Greenwich and lived in New Haven and his grandfather Prescott Bush was our U.S. Senator in the 50s and 60s. Four generations of his family went to Yale. A Bush library in New Haven could have also had exhibits dedicated to the other presidents who attended Yale; Bill Clinton and William Howard Taft. Its proximity to New York would have been an ideal place to store the 9/11 papers for scholars to research. I thought the Elm City would have been a perfect fit.

When the library topic first came up, I contacted New Haven Mayor John DeStefano to see if the city was going to make a pitch for the landmark to be built in his struggling city. Through a spokesman, I received a highly partisan response, that with all due respect Mr. Mayor, may have been short-sighted. “President Bush’s urban policies have hurt New Haven more than a presidential library would help.” I guess New Haven didn’t need a $250 million tourist attraction. Something tells me if Governor Malloy had been running the state then, Connecticut would have courted the Bushes. To be fair, it might have been a losing battle. In 2007, I asked then First Lady Laura Bush if Connecticut would be a good place for the library, and she told me she wanted it in Texas.

Politics aside, there ought to be some effort in New Haven to celebrate its place in presidential history. Perhaps a sign at Yale New Haven Hospital, maybe the home where a baby George Bush first lived with another future president could become an historic site. 37 Hillhouse Avenue is now home to the Yale Economics Department.

Foley: “Absolutely No New Taxes”

There are no official candidates yet in the race for governor, but the state Democratic party is already focused on the man it apparently believes will be the Republican candidate, 2010 GOP nominee Tom Foley. The former U.S. Ambassador to Ireland has made no secret of his intention to seek a rematch with Governor Dannel Malloy, but he did not declare his candidacy during a taping of Face the State, that aired Sunday. Other potential candidates for governor include State Senators John McKinney and Toni Boucher, House Minority Leader Larry Cafero, and Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton.

Foley shared with me some details of internal polling he’s done on the 2014 race. In a nutshell, Foley said his findings show the governor to be vulnerable and beatable in 2014 because of joblessness and the economy. Foley went on to say he believes fixing the Connecticut economy is simple and suggested the governor is taking the wrong action.

“All you have to do is hold spending flat for two years, but he is raising spending by $778 million. Why? We don’t have the money.”

Foley talked about what will likely be a key argument during the upcoming campaign: taxes.

DH: “You have said you will not raise taxes if elected in 2014. Is that a promise you are prepared to make, ?”
TF: “Absolutely.”
DH: “Absolutely no new taxes?”
TF: “Absolutely.”

We also talked about Foley’s take on the gun control law recently passed by the legislature and signed by Governor Malloy. During that discussion, Foley said more needs to be done for mental illness and he revealed that mental illness has affected his family. He has cared for a sibling with mental illness for 30 years.

After the Foley interview we had a political roundtable discussion with CT News Junkie’s Christine Stuart, the new editor of Connecticut Magazine Matt DiRienzo of the Torrington Register Citizen, and WTIC AM 1080′s Jim Vicevich. Read more about Jim’s appearance right here: http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2013/04/18/vociferous-vice-back-on-channel-3/

You can watch the Foley interview right here: http://www.wfsb.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=8797065

Analysis here: http://www.wfsb.com/category/213663/face-the-state

Watch our interview with Governor Malloy from February: http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2013/02/07/malloy-to-hit-road-to-rally-support-for-budget-plan-mum-on-14-run/

Vociferous Vice Back on Channel 3

For a generation of Connecticut television viewers he was known as the “Money Man.” Jim Vicevich was a business reporter for WFSB for thirteen years in the 80s and 90s, and was a reliable mainstay in a period of tremendous economic change. He filed his first report for Channel 3 as the Carter malaise came to a close, covered the boom of the Reagan era, and signed off shortly after the first President Bush was sent into retirement.

To give you a sense of just how big of a deal Jim was back then, whenever he would walk into a lending institution during the banking crisis of the early 90s, employees began to sweat. They instantly knew that the Money Man knew what they didn’t know; that their bank was closing. Jim Vicevich had great sources.

I was a Channel 3 rookie then, and after watching a couple of Jim’s reports I had doubts about whether I could make it here. He was that good; always the consummate journalist, known for breaking big stories and double checking his facts. Whether he was reporting from the Soviet Union or CityPlace, Jim was never unprepared. He spoke with such determination, Denise D’Ascenzo nicknamed him the “Vociferous Vice.” Our news director Mark Effron once told me Jim was “one of the best reporters around.” I learned a great deal from him.

This past Sunday on Face the State, Jim returned to Channel 3 to share details about the current chapter in his life, one he is facing with with determination and optimism. Jim suffers from Lupus, an autoimmune disease that doesn’t get the attention cancer or heart disease receive, but affects millions of people. During our taping, Jim explained how Lupus has changed his life, and how he is using his position to help find a cure. You can watch the segment below.

Seven years ago this month, Jim launched Sound Off Connecticut, a daily show on WTIC AM 1080. He’s been called the “Rush Limbaugh of Connecticut,” but he calls himself simply a proud libertarian. Sound Off is one of the most listened to radio programs in the state.

Also on Sunday, Jim joined our political roundtable discussion with Christine Stuart of ctnewsjunkie.com and Matt DiRienzo of Connecticut Magazine and the Torrington Register Citizen as we talked about the Tom Foley interview and the governor’s race.

Watch Jim right here: http://www.wfsb.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=8797070

Watch Jim in a report from 1988: http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2012/11/29/face-the-state-flashback-the-skyscraper-boom-that-never-happened/
…and this report from 1993 https://dennishouse.wordpress.com/tag/g-fox-department-store/

Watch Tom Foley, Vicevich, Stuart and DiRienzo right here: http://www.wfsb.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=8797070

Watch these segments on other Channel 3 alumni:

Bill O’Reilly http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2011/02/24/bill-oreilly-the-lost-wfsb-tapes/

Gayle King http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2011/11/15/gayle-king-at-wfsb-the-hartford-years/

Mika Brzezinski http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2011/06/23/mika-brzezinski-at-wfsb-the-hartford-years/

Bob Steele http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/tag/bob-steele-wtic-channel-3/

Al Terzi http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2012/02/23/goodbye-big-al/

Melissa Francis http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2012/12/07/melissa-francis-at-wfsb-the-hartford-years/

Mom and Dad, Don’t Give Booze to Your Kids

My grandfather giving a beer to an 8 month old Dennis House

Going to prom is one of those milestones in life that you will never forget. Proud parents take pictures of their impeccably dressed children who are heading out to celebrate this rite of passage. Sadly, every now and then a parent has his or own picture taken, in the form of a mug shot.

Just in time for prom season, Kara Sundlun and I just recorded a new public service announcement encouraging parents not to provide alcohol to teenagers. It is illegal for adults to provide booze to their children, and none of the usual arguments will get you off in court. “I thought it was safer, if I let them have a party at our house,” is a common line of defense. Far too many teens die in drunk driving crashes, and if you provided the alcohol, you are responsible.

It is up to you to set the rules. Not sure which rules my grandfather was following, but the 60s were a crazy time, just go ask Alice.

For more information check out http://www.settherulesct.org This is no laughing matter, although these prom pictures of Kara and me from a lifetime ago, most certainly are.

Lawyer: New Connecticut Gun Law Not Legal

A Branford attorney has uncovered a legal and legislative technicality that he says has rendered the state’s new gun law null and void. In an exclusive interview set to air Sunday on “Face the State with Dennis House” on WFSB-TV, Peter Sachs says state lawmakers made a key mistake in their rush to get a bill passed, that he claims will leave them no legal choice but to begin the whole process over again.

Sachs also works as a private investigator and generally remains behind the scenes, until now. He is well known to government authorities for his work in helping track down fugitive killer Adam Zachs in Mexico, who was captured in 2011 after 20 years on the run.

Relying on a stack of documents, Sachs told me when leadership in the general assembly brought the measure to lawmakers they did so by emergency certification, which is meant to speed up the process to pass a bill when an emergency calls for it. According to Sachs, state statute requires the speaker of the house and senate president to provide the facts in writing as to why an emergency certification is needed, something Sachs says Brendan Sharkey and Donald Williams never did.

“I believe what they (lawmakers) are going to have to do is start from scratch…the law was not valid. In my opinion the governor basically signed a blank piece of paper,” Sachs said.

Sachs also said this could impact other laws, too. Some lawmakers we spoke to today after the taping, said they want to wait until the Sachs interview airs on Sunday.

You can watch the entire interview this Sunday morning at 11 on Face the State only on Channel 3. Also joining us this Sunday is Hartford Courant business columnist Dan Haar, who talks about the future of the state’s gun industry in the age of this new law.

Sunday’s Face the State flashback has a vintage look at gun control: http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2013/04/12/face-the-state-flashback-gun-control-in-1968/

Watch the segment with Sachs here: http://www.wfsb.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=8769156

Watch the segment with Haar here: http://www.wfsb.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=8769164

Face the State Flashback: Gun Control in 1968

On a spring Sunday morning, television viewers watched a Connecticut senator talk about gun control. Sound familiar? Only this Sunday political conversation took place nearly 45 years ago. You’ll see it this Sunday in our Face the State flashback.

On May 5, 1968, Channel 3′s Tom Eaton interviewed Senator Abraham Ribicoff about the issues facing the state and the country during that tumultuous period in history. It took place a month after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Junior, and a month before Senator Robert Kennedy would be gunned down.

The number one song that week was “Honey” by Bobby Goldsboro, the hit movie was “the Odd Couple,” and the most watched television show was “Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-in.”

The big issue of spring 1968 was Vietnam. After the Tet Offensive, opposition to the war started to ramp up, and it fueled the presidential candidacies of Eugene McCarthy and Robert Kennedy. The weeks before the interview with Senator Ribicoff were ones of tremendous change. On March 31, 1968, President Johnson stunned the nation by announcing he would not run for re-election. On April 4, Dr. King was killed, and riots broke out across the country, including in Hartford. The call was loud and clear for lawmakers to do something to quell the unrest and to stop gun violence.

You can watch the entire interview with Senator Ribicoff this Sunday morning at 11 on Face the State, and if you want a taste of what it was like in 1968, the new season of Mad Men takes place then. The premiere ended with the case celebrating New Year’s ’68.