\nThe refusal of the 7th Circuit to grant Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan an en banc<\/i> hearing is a win for concealed carry in that state. While the question remains whether Madigan will appeal to the US Supreme Court, in the meantime the Illinois General Assembly has to get to work on a concealed carry law that would pass the court’s muster.<\/p>\n
As you can imagine, the Second Amendment Foundation is thrilled with the refusal to grant an en banc<\/i> hearing.<\/p>\n \n BELLEVUE, WA \u2013 The Second Amendment Foundation today won a significant victory for concealed carry when the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals let stand a December ruling by a three-judge panel of the court that forces Illinois to adopt a concealed carry law, thus affirming that the right to bear arms exists outside the home.<\/p>\n The ruling came in <\/i>Moore v. Madigan, a case filed by SAF. The December opinion that now stands was written by Judge Richard Posner, who gave the Illinois legislature 180 days to \u201ccraft a new gun law that will impose reasonable limitations, consistent with the public safety and the Second Amendment\u2026on the carrying of guns in public.\u201d That clock is ticking, noted SAF Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb.<\/p>\n \u201cIllinois lawmakers need to create some kind of licensing system or face the prospect of not having any regulations at all when Judge Posner\u2019s deadline arrives,\u201d Gottlieb said. \u201cThey need to act. They can no longer run and hide from this mandate.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe were delighted with Judge Posner\u2019s ruling in December,\u201d he continued, \u201cand today\u2019s decision by the entire circuit to allow his ruling to stand is a major victory, and not just for gun owners in Illinois. Judge Posner\u2019s ruling affirmed that the right to keep and bear arms, itself, extends beyond the boundary of one\u2019s front door.\u201d<\/p>\n In December, Judge Posner wrote, \u201cThe right to \u2018bear\u2019 as distinct from the right to \u2018keep\u2019 arms is unlikely to refer to the home. To speak of \u2018bearing\u2019 arms within one\u2019s home would at all times have been an awkward usage. A right to bear arms thus implies a right to carry a loaded gun outside the home.\u201d<\/p>\n Judge Posner subsequently added, \u201cTo confine the right to be armed to the home is to divorce the Second Amendment from the right of self-defense described in Heller and McDonald.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt is now up to the legislature,\u201d Gottlieb said, \u201cto craft a statute that recognizes the right of ordinary citizens to carry outside the home, without a sea of red tape or a requirement to prove any kind of need beyond the cause of personal protection.\u201d<\/p>\n The ruling also affects a similar case filed by the National Rifle Association known as <\/i>Shepard v. Madigan.<\/i> <\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\n7TH CIRCUIT LETS POSNER RULING
\nSTAND; HUGE WIN FOR CCW, SAYS SAF<\/b> <\/p>\n