Gun Rights Group Takes Fight For Concealed Carry To Higher Court
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CBS) -- A gun rights group is appealing after a downstate federal judge ruled against allowing Illinois to carry concealed weapons.
As WBBM Newsradio's David Roe reports, Springfield U.S. District Judge Sue Myerscough ruled Monday that the Second Amendment allows citizens to protect themselves in their homes, but not on the street.
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Illinois is the only state, along with the District of Columbia, that does not have some kind of provision allowing people to carry of weapons.
Gun owners say that infringes on their right to keep and bear arms, and an interest group, the Second Amendment Foundation, is now appealing the decision to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Foundation founder Alan Gottlieb says citizens "don't check our constitutional rights at the front door."
A similar lawsuit filed in Illinois and backed by the National Rifle Association remains in federal court.
In December, downstate U.S. Rep. Tim Johnson (R-Ill.) introduced the National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act, HR 3543, which would permit anyone who obtains a permit to carry a concealed weapon in another state to carry weapons legally in Illinois.
In a news release on his Web site, Johnson characterizes carrying concealed weapons as a "constitutional right" that should be guaranteed to all citizens, saying "the Second Amendment could not be more clear on this issue."
Johnson blames Cook County for the fact that concealed carry still is not permitted in Illinois.
Concealed carry legislation at the state level so far has failed.
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