Portrait: A Connecticut State Pistol and Revolver Permit holder, Brendan Kruse of New Haven, who was able to fend off three muggers in New Haven in 2011 while using his pistol that he was carrying concealed. January 18, 2013. Photo by Peter Hvizdak / New Haven Register

By Michelle Tuccitto Sullo
Investigations Editor
If you live in a small town in Connecticut, you are more likely to have a pistol permit than a city dweller.
While Bridgeport has the highest number of permit holders, several small, rural towns top the list with the highest percentage of their population having a pistol permit.
About 170,000 people in Connecticut have them, and the number of individuals seeking them has increased in recent years.
Attorney Ralph Sherman of New Britain, who has had a pistol permit for about 25 years, said he originally got his because he knew people who had awakened to discover a burglar in their home.
“I wondered what I would do in that situation,” Sherman said. “I don’t feel that calling 911 and waiting for help is adequate.”

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