Guns and Gear

Illinois becomes last state to allow concealed carry

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Illinois became the last state to lift its ban on the concealed carry of firearms Tuesday, according to the Chicago Tribune.

The state legislature voted to override Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn’s veto of initial legislation to allow and regulate concealed carry.

After the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Illinois’s ban on concealed carry unconstitutional last December, legislators were required to take action by June 9 to pass laws allowing and regulating concealed carry. The court later extended the deadline to today.

Quinn issued an amendatory veto to the legislation the first time it was passed, suggesting harsher restrictions on where and how concealed carry would be permitted. The House voted  77-31 to override Quinn’s veto and pass the original legislation governing legal concealed carry of weapons, and the Senate followed suit in a 41-17 vote.

The law now passed by the state legislature allows concealed carry in restaurants whose sales revenue is less than 50 percent alcohol but bans firearms in a series of public places, including public transit, schools, libraries and parks.

Quinn’s proposed changes to the legislation had included banning firearms in restaurants that serve any amount of alcohol and prohibiting citizens from carrying more than one firearm at a time.

Chicago’s sky-high gun violence continued to shock the country as violence over the Fourth of July brought the city to over 200 homicides for the year. Seventy-four Chicagoans were shot between Wednesday and Sunday night of the holiday weekend.

The new law will allow Illinois residents who have already obtained a firearm owner’s identification card, pass a background check and complete a 16-hour gun-safety training to obtain a permit for concealed carry. The additional permit will come at a cost of $150.

State police will now have 60 days to license instructors and training courses for the compulsory 16-hour training. Spokeswoman Monique Bond said 300,000 applications are expected in the first year of the ban being lifted.

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