Thursday Bulletin – July 6, 2023 
 

Last week, on June 29, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals heard an oral argument in Barnett v. Raoul, which was one of the three cases consolidated in the Southern District of Illinois with the ISRA’s Harrel v. Raoul. Together with two cases coming from the Northern District of Illinois, the six cases all presented challenges to Illinois’s recent “assault weapon” and large-capacity magazine ban/registration scheme. Currently, the laws are in force, as an injunction entered in April by the Southern District was stayed by the Seventh Circuit. (The issue of what happens to all the affected firearms purchased while injunctions were in force is still to be determined, perhaps in a separate court proceeding).

During the argument, there was tough questioning towards both sides. The government Defendants (State and Cook County) argued – incorrectly - that the impacted firearms do not implicate the Second Amendment, as they claimed they are not used for self-defense, instead labeling them “weapons of war.” The government struggled to find the historical analogues for the restrictions at issue – the “how and why” as required by the Supreme Court’s 2022 Bruen decision – and had to settle for colonial regulations on gunpowder storage that were actually enacted for fire suppression and to protect firefighters.  

The Plaintiffs’ attorney from Barnett, who also argued for the NSSF and the Harrel Plaintiffs and others – as well as the other Plaintiffs’ attorneys who argued in some of the other cases - pointed out that the Second Amendment, per the Supreme Court’s rulings in Heller and Bruen, protects firearms in common use for lawful purposes, not just self-defense.  They argued that the semi-automatic rifles that are affected are very distinguishable from machine guns that were for the military and not commonly owned by civilians (though often used by gangsters and criminals), and that semi-automatic rifles have been used for self-defense and other lawful purposes for hundreds of years. However, Justice Easterbrook repeatedly asked whether it matters that something is in common use only because it wasn’t banned, and that something isn’t in common use only because it was banned. He asked whether it would have made a difference if the State had banned the weapons at issue years ago. Counsel noted that there are approximately 24 million AR platform rifles in the United States, and that must qualify as common use, especially as the Supreme Court noted in Caetano that 200,000 stun guns in the U.S. met the “common use” standard. 

There is no timetable for a decision, though given the timetable of the statute we expect it will be sooner rather than later. However, whatever decision the Court makes will surely be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

July is definitely here, and with it the summer wave of senseless shootings by people who shouldn’t own firearms in the first place.  Of course, right on queue mayors of large and out-of-control cities call for more gun control.  The problem of course, is they do not want to see the real problems, let alone deal with them in a meaningful manner.   To deal with them in a meaningful manner would mean they would have to be responsible for their actions.  In this age of everyone being a victim of something or other, that type of action is unpopular.  It is easier to blame an inanimate object than to deal with the real problems. 

On the other side of the coin, law abiding gun owners are voting with their feet and their pocketbooks.  The exodus from places like Chicago, Philadelphia, Baltimore, New York, and other blue cities whose populations are out of control, tells one part of the tale. On the other side of the coin, people are arming themselves in ever greater numbers.

In 1991, we reached the peak as far as crime rates go.  Since that time, 26 states have enacted and shall issue concealed carry laws.  Even more recently, 27 states now have constitutional carry.  Since 1991, the crime rate has gone down 42%.  The anti-gun crowd hates it when anyone brings that up.  More guns = less crime.

July is also the month when the national shooting championships go into full swing. These will last through August with some going into September. The national rifle and pistol championships will be held at both Camp Perry, Ohio and Camp Atterbury, Indiana.  The Civilian Marksmanship Programs will be at Camp Perry, Ohio and the NRA Championships will be at Camp Atterbury, Indiana.  The Illinois State Rifle Association will have teams at both championships. 

The Grand American World Trap Shooting Championships will be held in Sparta starting in late July and running until the middle of August.  The ISRA will be in our office, which is right on the firing line at Sparta, starting July 27.  Speaking of Sparta, we need more ISRA Volunteers to help with the Youth Camp that starts on July 27. Please call the ISRA office at 815-635-3198 and volunteer for July 28 or July 29, or both days if you have time. You will receive a special ISRA hat and goody bag.  Lunch will be provided each day. 

High School youth trapshooting is the fastest growing of the high school sports, with 90,000 students participating.  Of course, the anti-gun Brady Campaign doesn’t like the idea of all the responsible, self-reliant, good students being involved.  They are anti-gun no matter what.  Remember that.

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Upcoming Gun Shows

While the gun show information shown in this email is believed to be accurate – sometimes changes occur. This is provided for informational purposes only.

August 4 – 5 Prairie State Longrifle Show, Super Stay Inn, Princeton

August 12 – 13 Bloomington Gun & Knife Show, Interstate Center, Bloomington

August 26 – 27 Belleville Gun & Knife Show, Belle-Clair Fairgrounds, Belleville

September 16-17 Kankakee Gun & Sportsman’s Show, Kankakee County Fairgrounds

September 17 McHenry County Gun Show, McHenry County Fairgrounds, Woodstock

September 23 National Civil War and Collector Arms Show, DuPage County Fairgrounds, Wheaton

September 23 Chillicothe Sportsmen’s Club Gun & Knife Show, Chillicothe Sportsmen’s Club House, Chillicothe

September 30 – October 1 Central Illinois Gun Collectors Association Sangamon County Fairgrounds, New Berlin

October 8 Kane County Sportsman's Show, Kane County Fairgrounds, St. Charles 

October 22 McHenry County Gun Show, McHenry County Fairgrounds, Woodstock

October 28 – 29 Sauk Trail Gun Show, Bureau County Fairgrounds, Princeton