Fight Over Deerfield Assault Weapons Ban Goes To Court A Day Before Deadline
CHICAGO (CBS) -- North suburban Deerfield's ban on assault rifles and high-capacity ammunition magazines went to court on Tuesday, with the NRA seeking a restraining order preventing the village from enforcing the ban.
Deerfield's ban on the possession, sale, and manufacture of assault weapons and large capacity magazines is set to go into effect on Wednesday; but a Lake County judge is considering whether to impose an injunction to block it.
The National Rifle Association has teamed up with lawyers representing a Deerfield gun owner John William Wombacher III and firearm rights group Guns Save Life, who are seeking to prevent the ordinance from going into effect.
If the judge allows the ban to go forward, Deerfield residents would have to remove any assault weapons or high-capacity magazines from the village by Wednesday. The ordinance would allow police to confiscate and destroy any banned weapons. People who violate the ban would face daily fines between $250 and $1,000.
Village attorneys have argued the ordinance merely amends a 2013 ordinance that regulates the storage of assault weapons. They said the new ordinance is a response to the concerns of residents that arose in the wake of recent mass shootings.
Opponents of the ordinance have said it violates the Second Amendment, as well as a provision of the Illinois Constitution protecting private property from seizure without "just compensation."
