Springfield, IL-(Effingham Radio)- Local Republican Lawmakers have released statements in regards to the Illinois Supreme Court Ruling on the State Gun Ban:
State Senator Jason Plummer (R-Edwardsville) released the below statement following the Illinois Supreme Court’s ruling upholding the state’s recently enacted gun ban.
“Today the Illinois Supreme Court tried to thread a needle by refusing to rule on some extremely important aspects of this case, including whether the ban violates the Second Amendment. The justices in the majority stood by their political patrons, not the people of Illinois. But they also clearly showed that they are worried about being overruled by the federal case. The issue sits in the federal courts now, where I pray they have the courage and the decency to put the constitution over petty politics.”
State Senator Steve McClure (R-Springfield) released the following statement following the Illinois Supreme Court’s ruling on the state’s recently enacted gun ban:
“This ruling went as expected, with Illinois’ very political state Supreme Court ruling to protect their allies in the majority party. There are lawsuits against this ban which are still underway in the federal system, and which have a much better chance of getting a fair ruling on the merits of the law. I believe the gun ban is unconstitutional, which is why I joined with a bipartisan group of lawmakers to oppose it in the General Assembly. I am optimistic that our nation’s highest court will agree and will overturn the law.”
State Senator Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet) released the following statement after the Illinois Supreme Court ruled to uphold the recently passed gun ban:
“Despite what the Illinois Supreme Court may have ruled, I remain confident that the rights of law-abiding citizens will be upheld in federal court. I would remind everyone that under the Democrats’ other legislative push, the so-called SAFE-T Act, that criminals are running our streets, because the Democrats and their allies fail to enforce the countless criminal statutes that were already in place. They don’t want to arrest and prosecute actual criminals, but they continue going after law abiding citizens. Until you get serious about actually putting bad guys behind bars, all crime, including gun crimes, will remain rampant. That lies solely at the feet of JB Pritzker and his Democrats.”
From Representative Blaine Wilhour:
The Illinois Supreme Court today shredded our State Constitution by siding with JB Pritzker in its ruling to uphold the weapons ban law, according to State Representative Blaine Wilhour (R-Beecher City).
In their ruling on DAN CAULKINS et al., Appellees, v. JAY ROBERT PRITZKER, in His Official Capacity as Governor of the State of Illinois, et al., the Court completely ignored the main point of the lawsuit which is the unequal application of the state’s FOID card through special legislation. The weapons ban law allows some FOID card holders to have firearms such as AR-15s but not others. The idea that a Constitutional right would be granted to some citizens but not others is on its face a violation of the Constitution.
“This decision was not about the law,” Wilhour said. “It was about politics. The Governor bought and paid for this decision with the millions of dollars he put into State Supreme Court races last year and he got the outcome he purchased.”
Wilhour said the law has been in effect since the beginning of the year and has not made any kind of impact on violence in the state. There have been 367 homicides so far this year in the City of Chicago.
“Where is the evidence this law has done anything to make communities safer?” Wilhour said. “The political class in this state continues to make rules for the entire state but is never held accountable for the failures of their policies. This law violates the Constitutional rights of honest citizens, and it does not even make a dent in curbing violence in our communities. The US Supreme Court will eventually weigh in and do what the Illinois Supreme Court lacked the courage to do which is to protect the rights of honest citizens.”
From Representative Brad Halbrook:
“There are zero criminals that will pay attention to Pritzker’s new gun ban and registration. He only wants to punish legal gun owners.” – State Rep. Brad Halbrook
Shelbyville, Illinois – Friday the Illinois Supreme Court upheld the gun ban law that prevents certain classes of people from purchasing or selling a variety of guns based on particular characteristics of the weapon. The law passed during lame duck session on January 11, 2023 has been challenged in both state and federal court. The decision today comes from a lawsuit filed by State Rep. Dan Caulkins. His lawyer, Jerry Stocks argued the law violates equal protection laws as it treats classes of legal gun owners differently including allowing “grandfathered” gun owners to own the prohibited firearms as long as they register them. Stocks also argued that citizens have the fundamental, individual right to keep and bear arms for self-defense.
State Rep. Brad Halbrook responded, stating “This decision is one more bad decision by a court that Governor Pritzker spent millions getting elected. It’s no surprise that they ruled in this way. It is the second time in the span of a month that they have ignored our fundamental rights to protect ourselves and instead have emboldened criminals. The SAFE-T Act, arguably makes us less safe by returning criminals to the street and the gun ban law denies us the right to own commonly used weapons for self-defense.
There are zero criminals that will pay attention to Pritzker’s new gun ban and registration. He only wants to punish legal gun owners. Additionally, I have no doubt that the federal cases opposing this gun ban will find the law unconstitutional, but the Governor seems to want legal gun owners to spend money defending their rights against his party’s far Left agenda. It is also the third time this Summer that laws passed by the Democrats have wound up in court. Just this week, a judge blocked SB1909, recently signed by the Governor, which limits the free speech of pro-life pregnancy centers.”
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