Westport police arrested an 86-year-old woman accused of bringing a BB gun to a town meeting.
When detectives retrieved the gun, Estelle Margolis, 86, of Westport, told officers she brought it to make a point during a discussion about gun control to show how easy it is to purchase a gun, according to police.
At 9:15 p.m. on Tuesday, a Representative Town Meeting member approached a Westport police officer and reported that he and another RTM member believed a woman walked into the auditorium with what they believed was a weapon under a white cloth, police said.
The Westport officer and a detective retrieved the rifle from the auditorium where the public meeting was in session and then found Margolis in the main lobby, police said.
Officers determined that the rifle was a BB gun rifle and Margolis told officers that she was planning to go up on the stage when the topic of gun control came up and make a point to the audience on how easy it was for her to purchase the gun, according to police.
In addition to the BB gun rifle, the woman had a box of 46-caliber pellets with her at the meeting, police said.
Margolis was issued a misdemeanor summons for breach of peace second and is due in court date.
“Regardless of what her reasoning was to bring the BB gun rifle to the meeting, it was a poor decision that created alarm and concern to the public. This incident could have clearly escalated into a tragedy,” police said in the news release.
Westport Now reports that Margolis is a town activist and has held anti-war demonstrations.
Margolis said her attorneys advised her not to talk about the case until her hearing Jan. 18. Her attorneys declined comment as well and said her position would be heard in court.
