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Public forum on gun violence tonight

A forum to discuss gun violence will be held Monday night at 7 p.m. on Northern Illinois University’s Naperville Campus.

The NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action sent out a call for pro-gun rights supporters to attend:

As defenders of the Second Amendment, we need to make sure that our voice is heard amongst the accusations that guns on campuses and concealed carry permit holders are what cause violence!

The forum was organized by the Illinois Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. One of the students injured during the Virginia Tech massacre last year will be on the panel.

The meeting location:

Northern Illinois University, Naperville Campus, Conference Room 101C
1120 East Diehl Road, Naperville, IL 60563-9347
(Located 0.8 mile west of Naper Blvd, south side of street)

Owning a handgun in Chicago

The City of Chicago Municipal Code (the applicable chapter which I have linked here) denotes who can carry a weapon in Chicago (despite some attempts to the contrary), and the details of how to register a firearm in the city. Here’s a closer look at how this all plays out:

8-20-010 Unlawful to carry – Exceptions.

It shall be unlawful for any person to carry or maintain in any vehicle or about his or her person except when on his or her property or in his or her residence or fixed place of business, any rifle, shotgun, or other firearm; provided, that this section shall not apply to:

(1) Peace officers or any person summoned by any such officers to assist in making arrests or preserving the peace while he is actually engaged in assisting such officer;

(2) Wardens, superintendents and keepers of prisons, penitentiaries, jails, and other institutions for the detention of persons accused or convicted of an offense, while in the performance of their official duty or commuting between their homes and places of employment;

(3) Members of the Armed Services or Reserve Forces of the United States or the Illinois National Guard or the Reserve Officers Training Corps, while in the performance of their official duty;

(4) Special agents employed by a railroad to perform police functions, or employees of a detective agency, watchman-guard or patrolman agency, licensed by the State of Illinois, while actually engaged in the performance of the duties of their employment or commuting between their homes and places of employment;

(5) Agents and investigators of the Illinois Crime Investigating Commission authorized by the Commission to carry weapons, while on duty in the course of any investigation for the Commission;

So there’s no concealed carry rights in Chicago, and only police and other specific public servants can carry weapons.

While it might appear that it is legal to possess a firearm in one’s own home from the above text, it is actually illegal to possess an unregistered firearm in Chicago – and it is nearly impossible to have a firearm registered:

8-20-040 Registration of firearms.

(a) All firearms in the City of Chicago shall be registered in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. It shall be the duty of a person owning or possessing a firearm to cause such firearm to be registered. No person shall within the City of Chicago, possess, harbor, have under his control, transfer, offer for sale, sell, give, deliver, or accept any firearm unless such person is the holder of a valid registration certificate for such firearm. No person shall, within the City of Chicago, possess, harbor, have under his control, transfer, offer for sale, sell, give, deliver, or accept any firearm which is unregisterable under the provisions of this chapter.

8-20-050 Unregisterable firearms.

No registration certificate shall be issued for any of the following types of firearms:

(c) Handguns, except:

(1) Those validly registered to a current owner in the City of Chicago prior to the effective date of this chapter, and which contain each of the following:

According to the City Clerk of Chicago legal department, the effective date for this chapter was Mar. 19, 1982. So it is legal to own a handgun in Chicago, but only if it’s grandfathered in, having been registered before the code was enforced.

Father of girl who shot herself faces separate gun charge

An update to an earlier post:  The father of the 3-year-old girl who shot herself in Detroit Sunday was charged with carrying a concealed weapon this afternoon according to The Detroit News.  The girl remains in critical condition after shooting herself with a gun that was somehow left within her reach.

List of “pro-gun” legislators published after threats of violence

Rev. Michael Pfleger, Pastor of Chicago’s St. Sabina’s Catholic Church, in May of 2007 called for pro-gun legislators in Springfield, Il. to be “snuffed”

Last week Pfleger mailed out a list of the names of 69 legislators of the Illinois General Assembly who have been labeled “pro-gun.”

According to an e-mail alert put out by the “Friends of St. Sabina,” Pfleger plans a march on the Illinois Capitol on Wednesday, April 9th. The purpose of the march is supposedly to put pressure on legislators to pass legislation cracking down on hunters and sportsmen.

Disturbing trends

Chicago has a long, sordid history of corruption, dating back to the very early 20th century. One repeating theme is that of police corruption. Chicago’s major papers are peppered with police corruption scandals, with one popping up every few months

Considering that police are the largest part of a very small portion of residents of Chicago who can legally possess firearms – this track record does little to assuage concerns about personal safety.

3-year-old girl shoots herself in the head

The hardest things about writing about gun control is that there is very rarely any good news about guns in the media. This girl apparently found her parents gun and shot herself with it.

Hot Topics

1) The Second Amendment of the Bill of Rights has language that remains confusing to many. I’ll be searching out discussions on gun control and the various interpretations of the Second Amendment and seeing if there isn’t some consensus to be found.

2) The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case District of Columbia v. Heller on Mar. 18, 2008. The question before the court is:

Whether the following provisions, D.C. Code §§ 7-2502.02(a)(4), 22-4504(a), and 7-2507.02, violate the Second Amendment rights of individuals who are not affiliated with any state-regulated militia, but who wish to keep handguns and other firearms for private use in their homes?

A decision in the case is expected by the end of June. If residents of D.C. are allowed to keep handguns in their homes, there is a chance that Chicago’s own strict gun control laws will face similar challenges. I’ll be following the case closely and the discussions about the high profile upcoming decision.

3) Chicago’s Municipal Code’s chapter 8-20 provides definitions and instructions for registering firearms in the city and I intend to delve into this code and make it understandable through a series of posts. Mayor Daley is also pushing for more gun laws on a state-wide level and I’ll be looking more closely at his proposed changes.

Actor and gun rights advocate Charlton Heston dies at 84

Though his conservative politics earned him many detractors, Heston was a great actor in his heyday.

He was admired for his unapologetic approach to life. I can’t help but think of him telling some guys in monkey suits “Get yer stinkin’ paws off me, you damn dirty ape!”