Illinois State and Municipal Gun Regulations Face Supreme Court Review

On Behalf of | May 10, 2023 | Criminal Defense |

Illinois Supreme Court Fast Tracks Review of Assault Weapons Ban

In the wake of the tragic shooting in Highland Park at a Fourth of July parade, Governor Prtizker signed a law that banned the sale and transfer of various assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, as well as requiring current owners register them with the state. Almost immediately, the law was challenged by multiple interest groups, business owners, and other parties and the Illinois Supreme Court agreed to expediate its review of one of those challenges in which a Macon County judge ruled that the law violated the Illinois Constitution. However, the Illinois State Supreme Court may not be the only party that takes an interest in Illinois’ gun regulations.

Federal Courts Reach Opposite Conclusions as US Supreme Court Weighs Injunction

Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who is assigned to review injunction petitions for the Seventh Circuit which covers Illinois, Wisconsin and Indiana, has requested that the city of Naperville provide further information about its ordinance to a petition for injunctive relief after the City Counsel passed an ordinance in August prohibiting the sale of certain assault weapons within the city limits, mirroring the Illinois law. The injunctive relief was sought after a judge in the Northern District of Illinois ruled that the law was constitutionally sound and denied the sought-after delay in the bans’ implementation. The invitation from Justice Coney Barret came just after a separate judge in the Southern District of Illinois blocked the enforcement of the assault weapons ban in a different lawsuit. However, shortly after, Judge Easterbook of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals blocked the injunction from taking effect. With competing and diametrically opposed conclusions being reached in different federal district courts, it appears likely that the Supreme Court will ultimately weigh in on this hotly debated matter and provide guidance on the breadth of the Second Amendment and the right to bear arms.

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