With the governor's signature Tuesday night, an assault weapons ban has become law in Illinois, and supporters and opponents are bracing themselves for a potential legal battle over the bill.
"Yesterday I began my second term as governor and today we made history, becoming the ninth state to institute an assault weapons ban and one of the strongest in the nation," Gov. J.B. Pritzker said after signing the bill.
This legislation outlaws assault weapons, high-capacity magazines, and switches that allow non-automatic weapons to fire shots in rapid succession. Those who already own legal assault weapons now have to register them with the Illinois State Police under provisions of the legislation.
Richard Pearson with the Illinois State Rifle Association says that the group is weighing legal action, and the bill goes after law-abiding Illinoisans rather than criminals.
"This bill doesn't do anything for the criminal element. It is an attack on law abiding citizens," he said.
The Illinois Senate approved the measure on Monday, and the House followed on a party-line vote Tuesday, sending the measure to Pritzker for his signature on the final day of the legislative session. The deadly shooting at Highland Park's Fourth of July parade was a driving force for the measure, which is being praised by the Illinois Gun Violence Prevention action committee.
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"It restricts size of ammunition magazines to ten bullets for a long gun, and 15 bullets for a hand gun. We have not had limits before, so this is progress," CEO Kathleen Sances said.
Highland Park ENT doctor Elliot Lieberman also survived the parade massacre. He says this bill is critical and hopes it becomes federal law.
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"There's no reason that we should have a preventable cause of death as the leading cause of death in children," he said.
Brady United, a group that filed a lawsuit against gun manufacturer Smith & Wesson after the parade shooting, says the bill will save lives.
"It's uniquely a U.S. problem. We know that when when they involve high capacity magazines and assault weapon, more people are shot and more people die," Tanya Schardt says.
Republican lawmakers have come out strongly against the bill, saying that they believe it violates the Constitution and that it will be struck down in court, something that Pritzker and Illinois Senate President Don Harmon have both said they are prepared to defend against.
