Current litigation by ISRA and other organizations
11/8/2024: In Federal Court for the Illinois Southern District, Judge Stephen P. McGlynn issues a ruling finding for the plaintiffs, the PICA is unconstitutional (click here for the PDF, 168 pages). The conclusion is on page 167. The case now has a 30 day stay. It is likely that the case will get appealed all the way to the US Supreme Court.
Kevin Culp is a now-retired Colonel in the United States Air Force who was, until recently, on temporary duty in Illinois. Because he is not an Illinois resident, he cannot get an Illinois Concealed Carry License (ICCL). The case went through the Federal court and the Federal 7th Circuit Court of Appeals with a ruling againsts the plaintiff on 4/12/2029. A Certiorari Petition to the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) was denied 6/15/2020. A Certiorari Petition means that we asked the United States Supreme Court to hear our case. It does not mean that the SCOTUS heard the case and made a ruling.
Synopsis: Plaintiffs seek to enjoin several provisions of the Firearm Dealer License Certification Act because they are vague and burdensome, especially to smaller retailers. Status: The filing of an amended complaint has been pending since 2020. The ISRA has filed a motion to amend the complaint following the enactment of Emergency Rules. The plaintiffs have a motion for a preliminary injunction to stop the law. Status: The filing of an amended complaint has been pending since 2020.
Thousands of Illinois FOID card holders have appealed the denial or revocation of their FOID cards and have not had those FOID cards returned, despite obvious situations where the restoration should have been quickly processed. In part, this problem stems from the more than $29,500,000 which was swept from the funds which prevented hiring the personnel and purchasing equipment which would fix the problem. Case last status was 4/3/2023: case is voluntarily dismissed with prejudice, with each side to bear its own costs. Stipulation of Dismissal by plaintiffs (PDF).
Mr. White lives in Chicago. He has a FOID card and has never done anything wrong but cannot get an ICCL, mainly because he is on the Chicago gang database list. He is not and has never been a gang member. The only thing he has done wrong is grow up in a bad neighborhood. This federal case went up to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, where it was dismissed on 10/6/2021.
This is a foster parent and home daycare case. If you have a daycare home, and/or are a foster parent, the Department of Children and Family Services will only allow you to have a firearm if it is unloaded and in a safe. Also, if you have a daycare home you cannot possess a handgun at all. They also have the right to inspect without notice. This case is in ongoing discovery.
This is an assault weapons law preemption case. State law preempts local Municipals from passing firearm ordinances. Deerfield defied state law. The trial court ruled in the Plaintiffs’ favor and struck down the ordinance as a violation of State law. This case is presently on appeal to the Second Appellate District.
A case brought against Cook County, challenging its “Assault Weapon” ban. Originally filed in 2007, the case went twice to the Appellate Court and Illinois Supreme Court. Following the Friedman decision, the case was dismissed and refiled. The refiled case was removed to the Federal Court. The District Court and Seventh Circuit declined Plaintiffs’ efforts to distinguish this case from Friedman, and dismissed/affirmed the dismissal of the Plaintiffs’ Complaint. A Petition of a Writ of Certiorari is before the United States Supreme Court.
Vivian Brown had a single shot .22 rifle in her home for self-defense. She had no FOID card. A White County Court ruled the FOID unconstitutional in the home. The State filed a direct appeal to the Illinois Supreme Court. The Court heard arguments on the case in September, 2019. April 2, 2020, the Illinois Supreme Court has remanded this case back to the White County Circuit Court. The Illinois State Supreme Court cites issues of constitutional and non-constitutional factors.
A few months ago, an Illinois Appellate Court ruled that those who sought relief for their denied or revoked FOID cards could never get such relief because of the way the law was written. So, Alfred Evans Jr., a man with some youthful mistakes, but now a fine family man and business owner, could not get his FOID application denial reversed, even though the Appellate Court said it would do so if the law were not written in such a way that its hands were tied.
David Sigale, with co-counsel Bryant Chavez and the support of the ISRA, is litigating Mr. Evans’ case in the Illinois Supreme Court to get his wrongful interpretation of Illinois law reversed, so that Mr. Evans and other deserving individuals like him can fully enjoy their Second Amendment rights.
Capitalizing on its federal appeals court victory Wednesday in Ezell v. City of Chicago, the Second Amendment Foundation today moved for a preliminary injunction against the State of Illinois to prevent further enforcement of that state’s prohibitions on firearms carry in public by law-abiding citizens.
The motion was filed in U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois in Springfield. Joining SAF in this motion are Illinois Carry and four private citizens, Michael Moore, Charles Hooks, Peggy Fechter and Jon Maier. The underlying case is known as Moore v. Madigan. The initial press release is posted on PRNewswire.
When the United States Supreme Court ruled on District of Columbia v. Heller in 2008 that Washington DC’s total ban on handguns and its strict firearms storage laws violated the right to possess firearms as protected by the Second Amendment; however. it was left unclear if that ruling was limited to the federal government, since Washington DC falls under federal jurisdiction, or if the ruling applied to state governments under the Fourteenth Amendment.
In 2010, the Illinois State Rifle Association and the Second Amendment Foundation sponsored litigation on behalf of Otis McDonald and three other Chicago residents to affirm that state and local governments cannot infringe on the right to “keep and bear arms” as guaranteed by the Second Amendment.
On June 28, 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in our favor that the Second Amendment is incorporated under the Fourteenth Amendment, extending the DC v. Heller ruling to apply nationwide, and ending Chicago’s practice of banning handguns by refusing to process registrations.
Tuesday, July 21, 2020, the Illinois State Rifle Association and the Second Amendment Foundation have filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking to force the Illinois State Police (ISP) to comply with the mandated 30-day requirement to issue a Firearm Owner’s Identification (FOID) Card if the applicant meets all qualifications.
The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, on behalf of D’Andre Bradley, David D. Moore and Tara D. Moore, and Brett O. Shelton. They are represented by attorneys David G. Sigale of Wheaton, Ill., Gregory A. Bedell of Chicago, and Jacob Huebert of Phoenix, Ariz. The case is supported by the Goldwater Institute. The lawsuit is known as Bradley v. Kelly.
Named as defendants are ISP Director Brendan F. Kelly and ISP Firearms Services Bureau Chief Jessica Trame, in their official capacities.
The law requires that the Illinois State Police either approve or deny a FOID card application within 30 days, but ISP has been dragging its feet, leaving applicants in limbo for months. In some cases, the agency does not act for as long as 90 days. These delays have gone on long enough. We had hoped to avoid litigation, but at this moment, we have no choice.
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