by John Boch
Guns Save Life Executive Director
First and foremost, Guns Save Life’s website has returned! We had fallen victim to malicious hackers who used and abused our server. For those who signed up online, banking and other personal information was not handled on our server, so no worries there.
I wish I had more good news to share. At least if you know what’s coming (or rumored to be coming) this allows you more time to consider what’s the better course of action for you. So pour your favorite beverage, have a seat and fasten your seatbelt because here we go.
FOID Legal Challenge
Our lawsuit challenging the FOID Act was rejected by a circuit court judge in Springfield. We will soon be at the state’s appellate court. Regardless who wins at the appellate court, we’ll be at the Illinois Supreme Court. If they try something cute, we’ll take it on up to the US Supreme Court and let SCOTUS put the IL high court in its place.
I think it’s fair to say that Pritzker and his buddies know deep down that the FOID Act is a dead man walking. We suspect they plan on running against the courts in the next couple of election cycles.
Gun Ban Legal Challenge
We’re still waiting for the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals to rule on our lawsuit challenging the gun and magazine ban. Folks, they’re gonna rule against us. Just expect it. We’ll ask for an en banc review, but given the narrow split among justices for and against gun rights, I’m not optimistic we’ll get it. Without going all geeky, suffice it to say we’re going to be stuck with this new law and playing defense until 2024 best case, and probably 2025.
Oh, we’ll win, eventually. But those advocating for racist, classist and sexist gun control aren’t going to give up and roll over.
They’re going to fight to the bitter end, just like the racists who advocated for keeping schools segregated in the 1950s.
What’s this mean for us? I see no hope that we’ll have this blocked before the registration component of this new law kicks in. In fact, I don’t see us gaining relief until well after the registration period has closed.
You have about five months to sort out your collection and decide what you’re going to do with it. Are you going to register your guns? Move them out of state? Boating accident or burial? You must wrestle with the pros and cons to find what works for you. At least you have a few months to weigh your options.
An Illinois State Police memo from January suggested the ISP intended to take a hard-line approach to the law, but that was then. We’ll see what they’re saying in October or November.
Mom-At-Arms did a great job uncovering those memos and their full story can be found here…
Something else to think about: Will Rep. Bob Morgan introduce a new bill in January to “close the existing owner loophole” and demand owners surrender all registered guns, mags & parts?
Sources inside the Pritzker administration have hinted that the governor will advocate for just such a “close the existing owner loophole” law immediately after the first mass casualty event after registration closes. Especially if it happens in IL.
Suing to stop the registration?
Yes, that was our first inclination, too. Then we consulted legal experts. We learned that no gun registration scheme has ever been rejected by any court in America. If that wasn’t enough, we could easily end up in front of the very same three-judge panel at the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals after spending $100k on a new lawsuit. So we’re taking a pass.
Thomas Maag from Southern Illinois might challenge it under 5th Amendment grounds, but I haven’t seen a filing. Don’t underestimate Mr. Maag though.
State Legal Challenges
Of course the Illinois high court ruled against Dan Caulkins in his lawsuit challenging the state’s new gun and magazine ban in state court. Frankly, it’s like they listened to attorney Tom DeVore in writing their decision. I’m pretty sure the Illinois Supreme Court will decline to take DeVore’s case. Like the US Supreme Court, the IL Supreme Court picks and chooses which cases it accepts.
[UPDATE: The Effingham County court dismissed Mr. DeVore’s cases in full.]
I’m not going to point fingers at Mr. Caulkins as some have done. Instead, I’m going to focus my energy on attacking the “bought and paid for” justices on the IL Supreme Court along with Pritzker & crew. I’d recommend the rest of us do the same. Eating our own isn’t going to get us where we want to go.
Don’t lose hope. Don’t give up.
It seems like we’ve got more than our fair share of rogue judges in our state. However, don’t lose hope as gun rights folks have struck down more gun control schemes nationwide in the last year (citing Bruen, in particular) than the total number of laws tossed out by the courts in the 40+ years before it.
What else is on the radar? I’m no fan of the new law that criminalizes “marketing” of firearms to youth, “militants” or those inclined to break the law. I just don’t trust the Pritzker administration not to use the law against political adversaries like Guns Save Life.
“Marketing” can mean a lot of things and no doubt they consider us “militants” in their fragile minds. With that in mind, I signed up for iDrive to ensure continuity of GSL should Pritzker’s goons show up at my house and take all of my computer gear. (I started with Dropbox but bailed on their lousy user interface.)
Radar 2.0: The “No Cash Bail” law was upheld by the state’s high court and they set September 18th as the date for implementation. Folks, two things you should do before then: 1) get concealed carry “insurance” of some sort and 2) clean and inspect your guns.
County jails will be releasing 50-75% of those held on pre-trial detention on that date. Protect yourself and your family. It’s your duty. After all, people love you and are counting on you.
For those sheriffs trying to figure out what to do with them, I stand by my earlier suggestion to rent a bus and drop them off out front of the home of the nearest politician who voted for the SAFE-T Act.
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