A new gun control law in Illinois would ban most semiautomatic firearms including rifles, handguns and shotguns currently owned by many people. Senator Julie Morrison (D-29) sponsored Senate Bill 107 in the Illinois legislature.
This legislation is one more in a string of bills introduced by democrats in state legislatures in different states. Oregon lawmakers recently introduced Oregon SB 501 that would restrict ammo purchase and require licensing for gun purchases.
The bill bans commonly used guns
According to the NRA-ILA, Examples of the proposed gun ban include:
Gun control laws such as those that ban most semiautomatic guns are attacks on gun rights.
- Any semi-automatic rifle or handgun that can accept a detachable magazine greater than ten rounds in capacity and has one or more features, such as a protruding grip for the support hand; a folding, telescoping, or thumbhole stock; a handguard; or a muzzle brake or compensator.
- Any semi-automatic shotgun that has one or more feature such as the ability to accept a detachable magazine; a folding, telescoping, or thumbhole stock; or a protruding grip for the support hand.
- Fixed magazine semi-automatic rifles or handguns greater than ten rounds in capacity and fixed magazine semi-automatic shotguns greater than five rounds in capacity.
- Any shotgun with a revolving cylinder.
- Parts or accessorys that would configure a firearm as above.
- Any firearm listed here by name or their duplicates.
Senate Bill 107 mirrors local ordinances within the state
The bill is similar to other such bans passed by North Shore municipalities and by Cook County. Highland Park’s ban was allowed to stand by the U.S. Supreme Court. Cook County’s ban was upheld in federal court but has never actually been enforced. Deerfield’s ban has been put on hold pending court challenge in Lake County Court.
Local ordinance bans merely assess fines as punishment for anyone who violates them. Morrison’s proposal would amend the state’s criminal code and make the first offense of buying, selling or possessing the weapons a class 3 felony. The penalty would range from probation to five years in the state penitentiary.
Laws to ban most semiautomatic guns wouldn’t reduce crime or stop criminals from getting them
The AR 15 is one of the most popular guns in the US. Democrats want to pass laws to ban most semiautomatic guns.
The addition of more gun control laws will not reduce the amount of gun violence. Illinois has some of the toughest gun laws in the nation but it hasn’t stopped gangs from illegally obtaining guns. Any additional ban on most semiautomatic guns would not stop criminals from getting them.
A study published by the Department of Justice reveals that the majority of criminals do not get their guns legally. Half of prisoners serving time for a crime during which they possessed a gun got their weapons either on the underground market (43 percent) or through theft (6 percent). Meanwhile, 10 percent bought guns from a retail source, including 0.8 percent who bought them at gun shows.
Chicago has strict gun laws that doesn’t stop the flow of illegal guns
According to NBC Chicago:
From 2013 to 2016, almost 7,000 illegal guns were recovered each year in Chicago, according to the city’s Gun Trace Report . In 2017, the total was 7,932, according to the Chicago police. As of Dec. 6, the total for 2018 was 8,309, and police say that could surpass 10,000 by year’s end.
As the nation’s third-largest city, Chicago routinely collects more guns than the two cities with larger populations. In 2016, Chicago collected six times as many guns per capita as New York and 1½ times as many as Los Angeles. About 90 percent are handguns recovered from adults, though the rate for juveniles has been increasing and accounted for nearly 13 percent of gun recoveries in 2016.
Politicians regularly say laws such as these are common sense gun control measures. Every study on crime clearly shows these laws never have their intended affect at reducing gun violence. Any law to ban semiautomatic guns will do more harm to the rights of law abiding gun owners than they do at reducing crime.