Firearms law

In Connecticut a domestic-violence arrest or a protective order generally means the pistol permit will likely be revoked shortly after the arrest, and every firearm and round of ammunition has to be surrendered or transferred on a short deadline set by the order. Getting the permit back is a separate proceeding: an appeal to the Board of Firearms Permit Examiners, with its own filing window and a hearing that can be many months out.

Attorney Saraceni handles the criminal case and the permit case together, because the outcome of one can affect the other. He carried a firearm for 27 years as a Norwalk police officer and understands both what the permit means to the people who hold one and how the revocation process actually runs.

What the office handles

• Permit revocation appealsAppeals to the Board of Firearms Permit Examiners after a revocation, most often following a domestic-violence arrest or a protective order.
• Permit denialsAppeals when a local issuing authority or the State denies a pistol permit application or renewal.
• Surrender under a protective orderWhat the order requires, by when, and how to comply without creating a new charge.
• Risk protective ordersFirearms seized on a warrant before any criminal charge, and the hearing that follows.
• Weapons chargesCarrying without a permit, criminal possession, and the weapons counts that ride along with other arrests.

How a case starts

1. Call the day the permit is takenThe appeal window is short and the order's surrender deadline is shorter.
2. Free consultationThe first 30 minutes are free. Bring the revocation notice, the protective order and any paperwork from the police.
3. Comply, then appealSurrender or transfer exactly as the order says; then the appeal is filed within the window.
4. The hearingAttorney Saraceni appears with you before the Board, and in Superior Court on any related charge.

Questions people ask first

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case turns on its own facts. Nothing on this site is legal advice, and contacting the office does not create an attorney-client relationship.