Court Won't Reconsider Illinois Concealed Carry Ruling

A federal appeals court has rejected Illinois' request to reconsider a ruling that found the state's concealed carry weapons ban unconstitutional.

State Attorney General Lisa Madigan had asked for the entire 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to consider the case after a three-judge panel in December gave lawmakers until June 8 to legalize the concealed carry of firearms.

Madigan argued that the ruling conflicts with decisions by other federal appellate courts and goes beyond what the U.S. Supreme Court has held.

Illinois is the only state that still bans concealed firearms.

Gun-rights advocates say the prohibition violates the Second Amendment. In the December ruling, Judge Richard Posner agreed, saying there's nothing to suggest that crime in Illinois is different enough to justify its ban.
 
Representatives from government agencies on Friday took turns speaking at a hearing in Chicago about how Illinois should carry out the court-ordered law letting people carry concealed weapons.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle spoke Friday at the Illinois House Judiciary Committee hearing. She urged extensive background checks and said guns shouldn't be allowed in schools, nursing homes, churches and government-owned and operated buildings. Chicago Transit Authority President Forrest Claypool said allowing guns on crowded trains and buses would be a "recipe for disaster."

Friday's hearing follows another hearing held by the same committee earlier this week in Springfield.