April 1st, 2011

Wednesday, the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police voted to support ending Illinois’ shameful status as the only state in the nation to outright ban any form of self-defense with a firearm in public for citizens.  FOX Chicago News reports:

Leaders of the Illinois Assn. of Chiefs of Police voted Wednesday to change their stance on the issue. They now support legalizing concealed carry.

In so doing, the IACP joins the Chicago Police Sergeants Association, who expressed their support for Illinois HB 148, the “Family and Personal Protection Act,” when it came up for a committee vote on March 8.  The Illinois Sheriffs’ Association has supported concealed carry since 2009.  The Illinois State Police have taken a neutral stance.

Something I should probably make clear right now is that I don’t believe that the right to armed self-defense can legitimately be made conditional on the support of law enforcement.  I believe, in fact, that the “Only Ones’” have no more right to choose to honor (or not) the fundamental human right of the individual to keep and bear arms than does anyone else (which is to say that they have no right at all to grant themselves that power).

Furthermore, as a strong believer in Constitutional Carry, whereby no government-issued permission slip is required, I should note that HB 148 falls far short of that, and as it’s amended (a process that the bill’s sponsor, State Representative Brandon Phelps, says is probably not over) with yet more restrictions, in order to bring more groups on board, it diverges even further from the ideal of permit-less carry.

Still, political realities in Illinois dictate that a gun bill with police support has a much better chance than one without, and a much, much better chance than one actively opposed by police.  Those same political realities dictate that a Constitutional Carry bill would be doomed from the beginning in Illinois–at least in the foreseeable future.  Passage of HB 148 would give Illinois residents a choice they currently are not allowed: carrying a defensive firearm while remaining law-abiding (assuming that’s what they want).  Currently, Illinoisans have only the choice between defenselessness in public, or risking their freedom (and their ability to legally own firearms–for life).

There is something to be said for getting a foot in the door.  Incrementalism has worked for the forcible citizen disarmament lobby, and for the gun rights advocacy movement, as well.  If HB 148 passes, and when “shootouts over fender-benders” fail to materialize, as they have in every other state, defensive firearm carry will cease to be frightening to so many, and more will become willing to put some thought into what shall not be infringed means.

The FOX Chicago News article cited above quotes State Senator Dan Kotowski (with whom I have long experience) citing a statistic that the Violence Policy Center is busy bellowing: that “concealed carry permit holders have killed 11 police officers and more than 200 others in recent years.”  What Kotowski and the VPC don’t want to talk about, of course, is how many police officers and others have been killed by people who do not have concealed carry permits.  By their “logic,” not having a concealed carry license should be grounds for suspicion.

Original article can be viewed here

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  2nd amendment, gun rights, Illinois, Kurt Hofmann, St Louis Gun Rights Examiner