Two Gun Rights Groups File Lawsuit Against a Chicago Suburb
At least two organizations that exist to defend the Second Amendment right to guns have filed lawsuits against the Chicago suburb of Deerfield.
In a statement, the Second Amendment Foundation wrote:
The Second Amendment Foundation today filed a lawsuit against the Chicago suburb of Deerfield, Illinois seeking an injunction against enforcement of the ban on so-called “assault weapons” and “large capacity magazines” adopted by the Village Board of Trustees earlier this week.
Joining SAF in the legal challenge is the Illinois State Rifle Association and a private citizen, Daniel Easterday, who resides in the village and is a gun owner. The lawsuit was filed in the 19th Judicial Circuit Court in Lake County. Plaintiffs are represented by Glen Ellyn attorney David Sigale.
The lawsuit challenges the village ban under a 2013 amended state statute that declared “the regulation of the possession or ownership of assault weapons are exclusive powers and functions of this State. Any ordinance or regulation, or portion of that ordinance or regulation, that purports to regulate the possession or ownership of assault weapons in a manner that is inconsistent with this Act, shall be invalid…”
“‘We moved swiftly to challenge this gun ban because it flies in the face of state law,’ said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. ‘While the village is trying to disguise this as an amendment to an existing ordinance, it is, in fact, a new law that entirely bans possession of legally-owned semi-auto firearms, with no exception for guns previously owned, or any provision for self-defense.
“‘The new ordinance also provides for confiscation and destruction of such firearms and their original capacity magazines,’ he added. ‘What is particularly outrageous about this new law is that it levies fines of up to $1,000 a day against anyone who refuses to turn in their gun and magazines or move them out of the village by the time the ordinance takes effect in June. This certainly puts the lie to claims by anti-gunners that ‘nobody is coming to take your guns.'”
“The Second Amendment Foundation (www.saf.org) is the nation’s oldest and largest tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group focusing on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess firearms. Founded in 1974, The Foundation has grown to more than 650,000 members and supporters and conducts many programs designed to better inform the public about the consequences of gun control.”
In a separate statement ISRA noted:
“The ISRA is pleased to announce that the association is one of three plaintiffs jointly filing a lawsuit against the Village of Deerfield. The ISRA, along with plaintiffs Daniel Easterday and the Second Amendment Foundation, contends that the village’s recently passed ‘assault weapons’ ban infringes on the rights of law-abiding citizens to acquire and keep firearms of their choosing.
“Certainly all citizens of good conscience are seeking a solution to criminal violence,” commented ISRA Executive Director Richard Pearson. ‘But enacting bad public policy for the sake of ‘doing something’ is not the answer. Lawful citizens should not be forced to pay penance for the misdeeds of others. Our lawsuit demonstrates our willingness and resolve to protect the constitutional rights of the good people of Illinois.’
“The ISRA is the state’s leading advocate of safe, lawful, and responsible firearms ownership. For more than a century, the ISRA has represented the interests of millions of law-abiding Illinois citizens.”
