In America, the Connecticut State Senate has just passed one of the toughest gun control laws in the US, in response to last December's shooting at the Sandy Hook Elementary school that left 20 children and six adults dead.

The vote wasn’t even close:  The bill passed 26-10 with a coalition of Democrats and Republicans joining to get it through.  The state’s lower House immediately began considering the bill.

The new law requires background checks for all private gun sales; bans the sale of high-capacity ammunition clips of the kind used at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut; and requires current owners of those large clips to register them with the state.

The size of magazines is the prime issue addressed in this legislation.  The gunman Adam Lanza fired 154 shots in less than 5 minutes.  Extra-large clips are also blamed for the high death tolls at the Aurora, Colorado Theater Shooting and the attempted assassination of US Representative Gabby Giffords in Arizona.  They enabled the murderers to keep firing without having to stop to reload.

The measure would also expand the number of weapons covered by Connecticut's assault weapons ban and establishes a $15 million fund to help schools improve security infrastructure.