Appeals Court ruling reinstates Illinois assault weapons ban for time being

CHICAGO (CBS) -- The Illinois assault weapons ban is back in effect for now.

Last Friday, U.S. District Judge Stephen McGlynn in East St. Louis issued a 29-page injunction ruling the ban was unconstitutional – because it restricted a person's right to defend themselves.

On Thursday, the federal Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals put a hold on that injunction.

This means the law will be allowed to go into effect while the case is reviewed by the Appeals Court.

Gov. JB Pritzker has always stood behind the ban saying it will hold up in court. Experts say it's not a slam dunk for either side, and ultimately this will go to the Supreme Court. 

"It's going to be a situation where we're going to all just have to sit back and wait because these lower courts aren't going to decide this case," CBS 2 Legal Analyst Irv Miller said last week. "It's going to be the High Court of the land, and that's that. Frankly, that's where it should be." 

Miller says nothing goes quickly when it comes to the legal process, but he expects this could be filed with the Supreme Court within the next several months and possibly decided within a year.