* The filing deadline is today and the story below doesn’t say how old or new the numbers are. Human beings, by nature, tend to wait until the last minute to file paperwork, particularly when it costs them money. [Adding: The numbers are from Monday, a few days before the deadline.] Center Square…
An Illinois gun rights group plans to sue the state Wednesday over the new gun dealer certification law set to take effect claiming gun dealers still don’t know the rules.
More than half of the state’s 2,351 federally licensed dealers haven’t applied for the state license, according to numbers provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Illinois State Police.
Illinois State Rifle Association Executive Director Richard Pearson said federally licensed dealers in Illinois don’t know the rules because the state hasn’t set up the rules yet.
“They don’t know what they’re getting into,” Pearson said. “They don’t know how much it’s going to cost them. They don’t know what the inspections are going to look like, they don’t know anything. It’s really has a chilling effect on the firearms business in Illinois and it was meant to. That was the idea of the bill.”
ISRA filed the lawsuit to block implementation of the law because the rules aren’t clear, Pearson said.
“If you were to build a building and say ‘I’m going to build a building,’ and the state says ‘you can build the building and we’ll tell you what rules we’re going to put in place after the building is built,’ you wouldn’t do it,” Pearson said. “So right now, more than half of the Illinois dealers are not going to have an Illinois license, so they’ll be out of business.”
State Sen. Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, who was the chief sponsor of the measure in the previous General Assembly, said he hasn’t reviewed the lawsuit, “although I look forward to doing so.”
“It is my understanding that the State Police are enforcing the law as it was written and signed earlier this year,” Harmon said.
Illinois State Police officials said in a statement that the agency is finalizing and formatting the Gun Dealer Licensing Rules.
* They’re requesting this relief from the court…
1. Enter a declaratory judgment that the Firearm Dealer License Certification Act violates Plaintiffs’ state constitutional right to bear arms and are unenforceable, with regard to the following provisions:
a. The requirement of prohibitively expensive security and alarm systems, as described in Section 430 ILCS 68/5-50;
b. The requirement of purchasing and implementing an electronic recordkeeping system within the next six months, as described in 430 ILCS 68/5-65;
c. The certification fee structure, as described in 430 ILCS 68/5-70.
2. Issue a permanent injunction, without bond required of the Plaintiffs,
enjoining the Defendant from enforcing the challenged provisions of 430 ILCS 68/5; 3. Grant Plaintiffs a recoupment of the costs expended prosecuting this
action and
4. Grant Plaintiffs any and all further relief as this court deems just and
proper.
…Adding… Jordan Abudayyeh…
Governor Pritzker was proud to make SB 337 the second bill he signed into law as governor, keeping his promise to prevent senseless gun violence from tearing apart families. This commonsense, bipartisan law makes sure guns don’t fall into the wrong hands and licenses gun dealers just like restaurants and other businesses. We’re certain the state will vigorously defend this important new law.
* Related…
* Exemption for Sparta World Shooting Complex signed into law
- RNUG - Wednesday, Jul 17, 19 @ 1:26 pm:
Not surprised. Only question was which Illinois based group would eventually file it.
I wouldn’t read too much into the 2,351 number. I suspect about a third to half of those are mostly hobbyists that hold a federal license just to make things easier for their personal collecting; pretty common practice. The actual storefront gun shops I know of have already have most of the provisions of the new law in place.
- Elmer Keith - Wednesday, Jul 17, 19 @ 2:03 pm:
This lawsuit against the state gun dealer licensing act is a joke, and Richard Pearson is a joke. Pearson & ISRA did nothing whatsoever to promote citizen carry in Illinois for twenty years. After he helped con Otis McDonald into signing onto the lawsuit against the city of Chicago handgun ban, Pearson now thinks concealed carry in Illinois was his idea all along.
Why hasn’t ISRA filed a lawsuit against the ban on licensed citizens carrying on public transport (CTA) or the Duty to Inform in Brandon Phelps’ carry bill? Because those provisions only affect black people in Chicago and Cook County, and most ISRA members don’t care about that, they live downstate and drive their monster trucks everywhere.
ISRA is filing this lawsuit because it affects their local gun shops in all-white small towns, where most of their members come from. ISRA will lose this lawsuit the same way they fumbled in Phelps’ carry bill.
- Nagidam - Wednesday, Jul 17, 19 @ 2:43 pm:
Elmer,
Put the dog whistle away. First, ISRA or for that matter any other gun rights group hasn’t filed a lawsuit over any prohibited carry areas. The Public Transportation prohibited area was requested by the city of chicago. Are you saying that the elected officials in the city of chicago are racists? Second, there is no absolute duty to inform. There is a duty to inform if asked by a law enforcement officer during a stop. That actually can protect the conceal carry holder as well as law enforcement. What are you going to do lie if asked by a cop who thinks your carrying? Real smart.
- Quibbler - Wednesday, Jul 17, 19 @ 3:14 pm:
Thoughts and prayers.
- Shall not be infringed - Wednesday, Jul 17, 19 @ 3:23 pm:
The law was written to run 4 or 5 gun dealers out of business, those IL dealers closest to Chicago, which has no gun shops.
Those border stores will comply and stay in business. They have the volume to be able to comply and remain profitable.
- Amalia - Wednesday, Jul 17, 19 @ 3:50 pm:
wee violins playing for you gun dealers.
- lowdrag - Wednesday, Jul 17, 19 @ 4:11 pm:
so I guess we don’t need tax dollars
- revvedup - Wednesday, Jul 17, 19 @ 4:32 pm:
Another fine example of a law written to interfere with the law-abiding’s right to conduct legal business under the guise of “crime control” and “it’s for the children”, etc. When half your dealers are driven out of business, that does nothing to reduce crime, because even the FBI admits most criminals aren’t obtaining their guns legally.
- Demoralized - Wednesday, Jul 17, 19 @ 5:10 pm:
Security systems and record keeping systems are a violation of your 2nd Amendment rights? Who knew.
This is par for the course for that group though. It’s what they do. File lawsuits to make sure there are absolutely no gun laws.
- Demoralized - Wednesday, Jul 17, 19 @ 5:11 pm:
==law written to interfere with the law-abiding’s==
Um, laws are meant to interfere with you not abiding by them.
==most criminals aren’t obtaining their guns legally==
So? Those are the sorts of silly arguments that can be made against any law.
- Nagidam - Wednesday, Jul 17, 19 @ 8:20 pm:
===File lawsuits to make sure there are absolutely no gun laws.===
ISRA supported the Firearm Restraining Order bill. Next
- Donnie Elgin - Wednesday, Jul 17, 19 @ 9:07 pm:
“I suspect about a third to half of those are mostly hobbyists that hold a federal license just to make things easier for their personal collecting; pretty common practice. The actual storefront gun shops I know of have already have most of the provisions of the new law in place”
Lots of FFL’s are small time operations often literally out of a garage. They handle mail order transfers for a $35 fee. They check that the buyer meets IL legal requirements for The sale and then hand over the firearm . These folks offer a valuable service and the new law is absolutely unnecessary and could put them out of business.
- Elmer Keith - Wednesday, Jul 17, 19 @ 10:24 pm:
“Exemption for Sparta World Shooting Complex signed into law” Once again ISRA and the gun hicks protecting their interests in southern Illinois. How many know that Richard Pearson from ISRA and (former) NRA lobbyist Todd Vandermyde traded off gun seizure language to the IL State Police in their 2015 “improvement” to Rep. Brandon Phelps’ garbage concealed carry bill? Thanks to Pearson, Vandermyde, and Phelps, ambulance drivers can seize your weapon if they “feel” you are a danger to yourself or others. It’s worth it though if the good old boys can buy shotguns at the Sparta complex. Great work as usual.
“There is a duty to inform if asked by a law enforcement officer during a stop.”
Who’s a law enforcement officer? Nothing in Phelps’ bill states that the “officer” who confronts you has to be in uniform, on duty, or within their proper jurisdiction. John Gacy had an unregistered Cook County Sheriff’s badge.
“That actually can protect the conceal carry holder as well as law enforcement.”
Right, like how it “protected” Philando Castile in Minnesota when he was shot seven times by a cop, who was not charged with any crime.
“What are you going to do lie if asked by a cop who thinks your carrying?”
Remain silent, it’s in the Constitution. Thanks for demonstrating the I.Q. level of the gun hicks. We can see why NRA is going bankrupt.
- Nagidam - Thursday, Jul 18, 19 @ 8:23 am:
Elmer Fud,
Your right, you can remain silent. By doing so YOU escalate the situation. You have a LE with a gun that suspects you have a gun and you want to relain silent. Brilliant I say, brilliant. You have the IQ of a turnip.