Illinois FOID Challenge Passes First Hurdle

You may remember the Motion to Dismiss in the case of an Ohio woman who wanted to have a functional firearm while visiting Illinois. This is the case by the Mountain States Legal Foundation. Illinois filed a Motion to Dismiss the case, for failure to make a claim upon which relief could be granted. I was initially skeptical they were going to easily overcome this motion, but it would appear that they have. The motion was denied by the federal judge hearing the case. What made me think the motion was difficult to overcome was that she had an Ohio license to carry, but it appears that’s not a fact in this case:

Ohio issues licenses to individuals to possess and carry concealed weapons … If Mishaga has such a license, then perhaps, she may legally possess a weapon in Illinois without a FOID Card pursuant to this exception. Mishaga does not allege that she has such a license. For the purposes of the Motion, the Court must assume that she does not, and so, must assume that this exception does not apply to her.

So they beat the first challenge. It would seem that Illinois law would allow non-residents to be issued FOIDs. Perhaps it’s time for Illinois State Police to change their policies in this regard, lest they continue to fight this expensive lawsuit.

4 thoughts on “Illinois FOID Challenge Passes First Hurdle”

  1. Being an Illinoisan I would love to see the FOID abolished. It is simply one more way to make an otherwise honest citizen a criminal.

  2. I believe as I was waiting the 3 months it took IL to issue me my FOID, I read that as long as a citizen of another state is legal to transport firearms in their state, they can transport them in IL. That is, if I interpreted the rules right.

    Of course, they’d have to be unloaded and closed in a “case.” Case can now legally mean anything from a rifle case to the center console in your car. So the person could possess it but unless you’re a peace officer, you can’t “carry” it loaded. Even then, there are restrictions on what some officers can do when they’re not on duty.

    (PS, good job with the blog!)

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