Judge Promises Ruling by Friday on Request for TRO on Weapons Ban

(ATTORNEY THOMAS DeVORE SPEAKING WITH THE MEDIA FOLLOWING WEDNESDAY'S HEARING)

A ruling is promised by the close of business Friday on a request for a Temporary Restraining Order against the ban on certain types of weapons and ammunition signed into law by Governor J.B. Pritzker earlier this month.

The suit was brought by Greenville-area attorney Thomas DeVore on behalf of Accuracy Firearms of Effingham, but another 866 people have signed on as co-plaintiffs in the suit.

DeVore suggested that "each day this bill is in effect (Accuracy Firearms) is deprived of income." He also suggested that the provision that some people are exceptions and don't have to comply with the ban deserves attention and argued that there are elements of the measure that are unconstitutional.

Meanwhile, Laura Batista and Joshua Kincaid of the Illinois Attorney General's Office argued that the short notice of the bill's enactment doesn't matter, and that there is no surety that Accuracy Firearms would be "irreparably harmed" by having fewer items to sell.

Batista and Kincaid said they were present only on behalf of Governor J.B. Pritzker and Attorney General Kwame Raoul. No one was on hand on behalf of House Speaker Chris Welch and Senate President Don Harmon, who are also named in the suit.

Judge Morrison said he was in court all morning on other cases and would be again tomorrow, but promised a ruling on the request for the TRO by the close of business Friday.

We should note that the judge's ruling will only impact Accuracy Firearms and the other plaintiffs in the suit. There are other suits on file in other parts of the state, and the Illinois State Rifle Association has filed a suit on the issue in federal court.

The bill that was utilized to carry the action, House Bill 5471, was originally an insurance bill ironically sponsored by local State Representative Adam Niemerg of Dieterich. The wording of Niemerg's bill was stripped from the measure and replaced by the weapons ban legislation, which Niemerg voted against.