James Toigo of Connecticut Shoots Squirrel, Gets Guns Taken Away Under New Gun Registration Law

The case of James Toigo in Milford, Connecticut has come under scrutiny after several guns he legally possesses were taken by police after they responded to his home after he shot a squirrel.

Tiogo, 65, was leveled with a range of charges, police said in a press release.

That includes unlawful discharge of a firearm, cruelty to an animal, first-degree reckless endangerment, second-degree breach of peace, failure to register an assault rifle, and three counts of possessing large-capacity magazines.

Police officers were directing traffic in the area when they heard a gunshot and went and investigated.

Police then seized an unregistered assault rifle and three large-capacity magazines–but also several guns that police believe are registered.

“As the investigation progressed the officers seized several firearms from the home for safe keeping,” police officer Jeffery Nielsen said in a statement obtained by the New Haven Register. “That included the assault rifle and the three high capacity magazine he did not have registered.”

Tiogo may have to file a petition to have his guns returned, depending on the outcome of the case, he added.

The case relates to a new law in Connecticut that requires gun owners to register assault weapons and high-capacity magazines or face a class D felony.

Some have argued that the law is not constitutional because gun owners who purchased their guns and magazines legally face retroactive punishment.