The Chicago suburb of Highland Park has some of the strictest gun control laws in the nation.
QUICK FACTS:
- The Monday mass shooting event in Illinois took place despite aggressive gun control and local red flag laws being put in place.
- Illinois, where the shooting took the lives of six and injured dozens more, ranks sixth for the most aggressive gun control laws in the country.
- Gun control group Gabby Giffords has given the state a grade of A- for its tight gun control laws, including a waiting period for gun purchases and licensing requirements.
- Illinois also has red flag laws, domestic violence gun laws, and “open carry regulations” along with a number of other gun control measures.
- Licensing for gun ownership is done via Firearm Owners Identification (FOID) cards, and only those with a FOID card can legally buy or possess a gun in the state of Illinois.
- In order to obtain a FOID card, the applicant must pass a background check.
CITY AND COUNTY REGULATIONS:
- Highland Park is a suburb of Chicago and part of Cook County, which has its own gun regulations akin to what some lawmakers hope are enacted nationwide.
- Cook County band “assault weapons” as well as all “high-capacity magazines,” which is similar to the ordinances put in place by the City of Highland Park who have also banned what they called “large-capacity” magazines.
- The Supreme Court of the United States has refused to hear a challenge against the city’s “assault weapons” ban, which was at the time called “a blow to the National Rifle Association and other pro-gun advocates.”
BACKGROUND:
- A shooter opened fire on an Independence Day Parade in Highland Park, causing the school marching band and bystanders to flee as six were killed and an estimated two dozen were injured.
- Authorities arrested 22-year-old Robert “Bobby” Curimo III without incident after hours of searching building by building near the parade route.
