* Amanda Vinicky…
In the years since a man who should not have been able to legally have a gun in Illinois fatally shot five people at a manufacturing plant in Aurora in early 2019, state legislators have failed to reach a consensus on legislation to help prevent similar incidents.
That may change come Wednesday, when the Illinois House is set to debate legislation (House Bill 562) that would establish a structure for law enforcement to remove guns from people whose Firearm Owners Identification (FOID) cards have been revoked.
The Aurora shooter’s FOID card had been revoked when a background check found he’d previously committed a felony, making him ineligible for a gun license in Illinois. But police never confiscated his guns.
State Rep. Jay Hoffman, D-Swansea, said he plans to call the measure for a vote when the House returns for what’s scheduled to be a one-day special session.
“This I believe will save lives, and provide for a way to eliminate the (FOID card) backlog by modernizing it, and will encourage fingerprinting so you’re more easily able to have your card renewed,” Hoffman said. “It goes a long way to making sure that guns are kept out of the hands of non law-abiding citizens.”
Hoffman said it’s the first time in memory that a gun measure has the blessing of principal gun-control groups like the Gun Violence Prevention Action Committee and the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence, even as the Illinois State Rifle Association, a gun rights group, is neutral.
- @misterjayem - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 10:12 am:
“gun measure has the blessing of principal gun-control groups like the Gun Violence Prevention Action Committee and the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence, even as the Illinois State Rifle Association, a gun rights group, is neutral”
This is nothing short of miraculous.
– MrJM
- Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 10:29 am:
The ISRA may see the writing on the wall.
The NRA is bankrupt, thanks to years of musical chairs of board seats, LaPierre the clown, and refusal to seek compromise on any common sense gun law reform.
- Blue Dog - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 10:38 am:
This will accomplish nothing.
- @misterjayem - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 10:41 am:
“This will accomplish nothing.”
The rare self-referential comment.
– MrJM
- 47th Ward - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 10:44 am:
===This will accomplish nothing.===
Maybe. But it’s better than knowing FOID cards can be revoked by a judge but that no one will lose access to their firearms because law enforcement doesn’t have the ability to follow up. Which, if you’re paying attention, is the situation now.
- Rich Miller - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 10:44 am:
===The rare self-referential comment===
Hilarious.
- Blue Dog - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 11:00 am:
Hb562 is no more specific in confiscation language than what we have today. Illinois current FOID requirements have done nothing to lower crime rates as compared to states that have no FOID. If this makes you feel safer good for whomever. I take this as the status quo. If you want to deter gun crimes. 25 years no parole. Age not withstanding.until the slap on the wrist sentencing ends the sooner you may see an end to the senseless gun violence. If someone loses their FOID go get their guns. You have that ability today
- Amalia - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 11:01 am:
so what about Cook County where Kim Foxx thinks that people without a criminal record found by the police with a gun not possessed legally should not get a criminal record ?
- Dotnonymous - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 11:10 am:
When anyone dies from gunfire…it’s never neutral.
Mr. JM …with the straight edge…LOL.
- Blue Dog - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 11:24 am:
Let’s revisit this post one year from passage.
- Nadigam - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 11:35 am:
To some extent @Blue Dog is not wrong to say this bill will do nothing to stop the gun violence. The bill will help with the backlog in the FOID system so people get their constitutional rights restored. The bill will also fund and coordinate law enforcement to help revoke FOIDs from people that lose their rights and ensure they follow the law on disposition of their firearms. This provision is a direct answer to the Aurora shooting. That is more what this bill is about than stopping the violence in Chicago.
- Gruntled University Employee - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 11:43 am:
Since May 30, 2021 there were 247 mass shootings that killed 283 people and wounded 1005 in the US. The Gun Lobby keeps telling me that we need more armed citizens to counteract this.
My question is, with almost 250 incidents, where are all of the “Good Guys With Guns” that are supposed to be protecting us?
- fs - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 11:44 am:
One issue that seems unanswered, that I hope is either addressed in debate or resolved in future legislation, involves the changes to private transfers. It says a person must give the paperwork to an ffl within 10 days, or face felony charges. What happens when I either can’t get to an ffl in the required time, or can’t find an ffl who will accept the paperwork? This seems like a really jumbled system that isn’t well thought out.
- Last Bull Moose - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 11:46 am:
I have been following this discussion for years. I have no philosophical problem with the FOID card. Just not sure it is worth the cost to enforce. We do cost/benefit all the time when designing safety features in highways. How does FOID compare?
When someone is arrested for armed robbery, do they get extra jail time for not having a FOID card? I don’t remember hearing those cases.
- Nadigam - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 12:10 pm:
@fs
===What happens when I either can’t get to an ffl in the required time, or can’t find an ffl who will accept the paperwork?===
I have looked at this part of the bill a few times. What I read is that there is no penalty in the legislation if a person fails to send in the private transfer to an FFL. There is a misdemeanor for first offence if a person does not tell a cop that request the name of the FFL you sent the transfer too. Second offence is a felony. Probably not what someone intended to write but that is the plan language.
- thisjustinagain - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 12:19 pm:
To the comment on ‘where are all the good guys with guns’. Do you realize how FEW people actually carry for self-defense, or what it takes to get your CCL in Illinois? If you are waiting for someone else to defend you, good luck. It’s up to YOU, not someone else, and that includes the police. But since you decline to defend yourself, don’t assume someone is going to save you if things go bad.
- Nadigam - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 12:32 pm:
===‘where are all the good guys with guns’===
That is a silly drive-by comment. Law abiding citizens that carry certainly want to protect themselves and their family. I would think it would be a bad idea to go out and play the role of law enforcement if your own life was not in immediate danger. Cops only see a person with a gun and certainly don’t know your intent.
- Blue Dog - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 12:50 pm:
Here’s what I will give this new law. FoID processing will improve….it absolutely can’t get any worse.
- fs - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 12:53 pm:
== I have looked at this part of the bill a few times. What I read is that there is no penalty in the legislation if a person fails to send in the private transfer to an FFL. There is a misdemeanor for first offence if a person does not tell a cop that request the name of the FFL you sent the transfer too. Second offence is a felony. Probably not what someone intended to write but that is the plan language.==
If you were never able to give the paperwork to an ffl, how are you supposed to be able to tell an officer the FFL you gave it to. “Second offense” can also mean transferring more than one firearm, which isn’t that uncommon. And twice in 10 years isn’t a lot.
- 47th Ward - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 1:04 pm:
===But since you decline to defend yourself, don’t assume someone is going to save you if things go bad.===
People like you practically ensure that any criminal or psychopath walking around can get and keep a firearm and as much ammunition and they can carry. I’m not going to be lectured on self-defense by someone who has so perverted the meaning and intent of the 2nd Amendment that now guns are so prevalent and accessible as to create a public health crisis of gun violence.
Our militia needs to be well-regulated.
- The Dude Abides - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 1:12 pm:
I don’t see anything onerous in this bill. Will it put a significant dent in our gun violence problem? Probably not as most of that violence is gang related. Kids who grow up without good parents are much more likely to end up joining gangs.
- Glenn - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 1:21 pm:
–My question is, with almost 250 incidents, where are all of the “Good Guys With Guns” that are supposed to be protecting us?–
How many of the shooters have FOID cards?
How many of the shot have CCL licenses that prevented them from having legal gun access during the shootings?
- Donnie Elgin - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 1:38 pm:
“Since May 30, 2021 there were 247 mass shootings that killed 283 people and wounded 1005 in the US”
And how many of the shooters were legally in possession of a firearm? Very few …
University of Pit study…
They found that in approximately 8 out of 10 cases, the perpetrator was not a lawful gun owner but rather in illegal possession of a weapon that belonged to someone else. The researchers were primarily interested in how these guns made their way from a legal purchase — at a firearm dealer or via a private sale — to the scene of the crime.
- Donnie Elgin - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 1:45 pm:
“I don’t see anything onerous in this bill”
It is all in the perception. To get the expedited FOID renewal one would need to pay to get electronic fingerprints sent to ISP. If you purchase a gun via a private sale (that today already requires a FOID confirmation) now you must drive to a FFL to have them keep the records for another fee of $25.
- Nadigam - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 1:48 pm:
@fs
===If you were never able to give the paperwork to an ffl, how are you supposed to be able to tell an officer the FFL you gave it to…===
I’m going to guess with this provision in an amendment that this was hastily drafted and is probably not written correctly.
- fs - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 1:55 pm:
== I’m going to guess with this provision in an amendment that this was hastily drafted and is probably not written correctly.==
As I said, it’s jumbled and not well thought out. Poorly drafted legislation results in bad law. And this bill will set someone up nicely for a disparate impact argument. Add to that the fact that the entire legal analysis of gun laws could be turned on its head by the Supreme Court this year, and it really seems dumb to run this bill now.
- RNUG - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 1:56 pm:
== Our militia needs to be well-regulated. ==
Firearms ownership, on paper, is more regulated in Illinois than most other states. The fact the current laws are not being enforced is not the result of too little regulation; it is the failure by prosecutors and law enforcement to enforce the laws.
- ddp76 - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 2:20 pm:
What I don’t see is the mechanism for removing the guns of revoked FOID card holders. That is the rub I think. The locals aren’t going to do it and State Police doesn’t have the staffing. Ultimately that’s what would need to be fixed. The how-to.
- Nadigam - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 2:35 pm:
===What I don’t see is the mechanism for removing the guns of revoked FOID card holders===
The bill expands the Violent Crimes Intelligence Task Force to include FOID revocations and also sets up a funding mechanism to fund this task force. Kind of the key provision in the bill.
- Lester Holt’s Mustache - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:27 pm:
== it is the failure by prosecutors and law enforcement to enforce the laws. ==
Agree with RNUG, and to some extent, Blue Dog as well. Legislators can pass whatever bills they like, but if ISP and (more importantly) county sheriffs aren’t going to follow through, then the bill is worth no more than the paper it’s filed on. You’ll have the ISP claiming they’re too understaffed to enforce, you’ll have your 2A cheerleader sheriffs that will outright refuse to enforce, and you’ll have your locals that will claim they’re too busy to enforce. This bill needs teeth to ensure LEO’s will actually follow through.
- 47th Ward - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:38 pm:
Oh please. We could register and license firearms tomorrow if the political will existed. Every gun starts out as a legal tool, and yet we still can’t stop the flood of guns from finding their way into the hands of people who misuse them.
The 2nd Amendment is not unlimited.
- Nadigam - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:51 pm:
===Oh please. We could register and license firearms tomorrow if the political will existed. Every gun starts out as a legal tool, and yet we still can’t stop the flood of guns from finding their way into the hands of people who misuse them.===
You are actually complementing what Blue Dog is saying. Restriction on legal or law abiding gun owners will not stop the illegal guns. What this bill will do is make the FOID system more efficient and fund a system to work on the FOID revocation backlog.
- 47th Ward - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:55 pm:
Thanks. But please don’t tell me what I’m saying.
- DuPage - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:59 pm:
Enforce “felon caught in possession of a gun” federal law. 8 years in federal prison. Authorize Chicago police to enforce by arresting and turning them over to the feds.
- Amalia - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 4:16 pm:
DuPage, right. need to go to the Feds cause Kim Foxx cares more about people caught with guns than stopping the illegal ownership of guns.
- Excitable Boy - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 4:22 pm:
- Let’s revisit this post one year from passage. -
Says dude who predicted hydroxychloroquine would get us out of the woods with COVID in a matter of weeks last March. You might want to avoid requesting revisiting of your prognostications.
- Elmer Keith - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 4:30 pm:
“What this bill will do is make the FOID system more efficient and fund a system to work on the FOID revocation backlog.” So we can all trust the IL State Police since they stole money from the CCL renewal fund, right? During the runup to Brandon Phelps’ concealed carry bill in 2011-2013, many of the gun hicks wanted a cheap $25 CCL fee to cater to their trailer park base. Pearson and ISRA *voluntarily* agreed to jack the fee, the same way they gave the police unions DTI, so the ISP would have “plenty of money to process CCLs on time.” I am not making this up.
Thanks for demonstrating the gullible nature of ISRA members from sundown towns and exurbia. It must be great to live in an all-white area where the cops are your friends.
- Nagidam - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 5:18 pm:
@Elmer Fud
First, it was Rauner that stole the money from the FOId system. 29 mil or so. Second, Duty to Inform is not what you think it means. There is no duty to voluntarily inform. You seem to constantly post about this issue. Did a cop put you through an evasive strip search?
- Huh? - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 6:30 pm:
“NRA is bankrupt”
The NRA may be morally bankrupt, but they are not financially bankrupt. They filed for bankruptcy to avoid New York AG’s attempt to dissolve the not-for-profit organization and subsequently relocate to Texas. The bankrupcy case determined the NRA was financially sound.
- Chichi55 - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 6:49 pm:
The increased fee and finger printing will ensure that many FOID card owners will never renew their FOID cards.
- Nagidam - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 6:56 pm:
=== The increased fee and finger printing will ensure that many FOID card owners will never renew their FOID cards.===
There is no new or increased fee in the bill for a new or renewal FOID card. Fingerprinting in voluntary.
- FormerParatrooper - Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 7:16 pm:
I took the time to read the Bill. I don’t see a fee increase anywhere. I see some task forces being developed that will be required to be funded. So the cynic in me says next year we will be told we have to increase the fees and the previous fund sweeps don’t matter.
The main failure of the Aurora shooter seemed to be shoddy record keeping and failure of the enforcement of law. Money wasn’t the issue, the bureaucracy was the problem. In my opinion of course.