Moore v. Madigan

Illinois v. Aguilar

The Illinois Supreme Court has ruled [pdf] that the state cannot ban the carry of firearms. If this sounds familiar, it’s because the 7th Circuit issued a similar opinion in December. This one supplements the Moore decision.

After reviewing these two lines of authority–the Illinois cases holding that section 24-1.6(a)(1) is constitutional, and the Seventh Circuit’s decision holding that it is not–we are convinced that the Seventh Circuit’s analysis is the correct one. As the Seventh Circuit correctly noted, neither Heller nor McDonald expressly limits the second amendment’s protections to the home. On the contrary, both decisions contain language strongly suggesting if not outright confirming that the second amendment right to keep and bear arms extends beyond the home. Moreover, if Heller means what it says, and “individual self-defense” is indeed “the central component” of the second amendment right to keep and bear arms, then it would make little sense to restrict that right to the home, as “[c]onfrontations are not limited to the home.”

Continued...

Civil Rights

First Briefs for Woollard

1 comment

The Supreme Court has ruled twice that the 2nd Amendment protects the right to own guns for self-protection. However, both of their rulings were confined to ownership in the home. Several states have interpreted that to mean that carry outside the home may be curtailed or even prohibited.

We’d hoped for resolution in the lower courts, but they’ve left us with a confusing patchwork of conflicting opinions. We lost when the 2nd Circuit upheld New York’s unworkable permitting scheme in Kachalsky. Although we won on the district court level, we lost in the 4th Circuit in the Woollard case.

Late last year, we scored a win in the 7th Circuit, in which Illinois’ ban on carry was thrown out. Rather than appeal, the state agreed to implement a workable permit system. That leaves us with a split between Circuit courts, which puts pressure on the Supreme Court to take up the issue.

Continued...

Civil Rights

Illinois Gets CCW

Today, the Illinois Senate voted 41-17 to override Governor Quinn’s veto, and they become the last state in the Union to allow civilians to carry firearms. This was a long, hard road for them, but the political maneuvering leaves Illinois residents with a problematic law.

The ball really got rolling with a 7th Circuit opinion last year, in which it was found that the state’s total ban on carry was unconstitutional. Attorney General Madigan was left in a delicate position. She could appeal the case to the Supreme Court, in which case Illinois would have likely suffered its third loss on 2nd Amendment issues (McDonald and Ezell were the other two). She applied for a stay and it was granted, but Wednesday would have been the cutoff. Had the legislature not passed a law, there would have been no statewide regulation on the carry of firearms, and Illinois would be like Arizona, Alaska, and Vermont.

Continued...

Civil Rights

Kachalsky v. Cacase

1 comment

The Supreme Court’s decisions in Heller and McDonald affirmed an individual right to keep and bear arms. However, those cases only addressed a central issue of keeping guns in the home. Though the Court found the right to self-defense to be “most acute” there, in no way did either decision imply that it ended at the doorstep.

Yet Maryland, New York, New Jersey, and Illinois have all claimed that their arbitrary and burdensome systems of issuing (or rather, refusing to issue) permits to carry a firearm outside the home somehow pass constitutional muster. So, we’ve brought lawsuits. We won in the 7th Circuit, and we won in the 4th Circuit. New York? Not so well.

Last November, the 2nd Circuit ruled that,

Plaintiffs misconstrue the character and scope of the Second Amendment. States have long chosen to regulate the right to bear arms because of the risks posed by its exercise.

Continued...

Civil Rights

2 comments

This case was a challenge to the constitutionality of Illinois’ complete ban on carrying firearms outside the home. Illinois is the last state to have such a ban, and the 7th Circuit has found it unconstitutional.

Judge Posner’s opinion is here [pdf]. There are three relevant points:

To deny the right to keep and bear arms outside the confines of the home is to divorce it from its purpose of self-defense, and that’s inconsistent with the Supreme Court’s findings in Heller and McDonald.
Rational basis doesn’t fly when it comes to the 2nd Amendment. Illinois needed to make a “strong showing” to justify a ban on carry, and they failed to do so.
Claims that public safety may be adversely affected (the “blood in the streets” argument) are unclear, inconclusive, and have little bearing.

This is a big win, and not just for Illinois. Congratulations are due to the 2nd Amendment Foundation and the Illinois State Rifle Association (ISRA).

Continued...