A proposed ban on carrying guns in Newtown has been blocked by town legislators who said they cannot preempt state law. The decision reached Wednesday night by Newtown’s Legislative Council is a victory for the firearms industry trade association, whose headquarters in Newtown has been the target of homegrown demonstrations, and a victory for the Southbury-based Connecticut Citizens Defense League, whose members have worn firearms to counterprotest gun violence prevention rallies in Newtown. The blocked proposals, written by the Newtown Action Alliance, sought to ban gun-carrying on town property and at public demonstrations to prevent armed counter-protestors from intimidating activists, some of whom are teenagers whose lives were transformed by the 2012 Sandy Hook shootings. The president of the Connecticut Citizens Defense League, which at 38,800 members is the largest gun-rights group in the state, welcomed the decision. “The Connecticut Citizens Defense League advocates for the right of all law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms to protect themselves and their families,” Holly Sullivan said on Thursday. “Ordinances that seek to deny our citizens this important right without cause or compelling reason have no place in our communities.”  [full article]