YES, BUT…: FOID Act struck down by *another* White County judge, State of IL sure to appeal

Yes, Virginia, the Firearms Owners ID Act has been struck down by a third (!) judge in White County, Illinois.  We at GSL didn’t drop everything and trumpet this news because, well, it’s largely a nothingburger at this point.  Definitely don’t burn your FOID card or go dancing in the streets just yet.

The ruling applies only to having guns in the home.

What’s more, Attorney General Kwame Raoul is guaranteed to appeal this decision to the Illinois Supreme Court as he did the previous two times judges drove a stake in the heart of the FOID Act.

Each time the Illinois Supreme Court squirms and finds a reason to kick the case back down to the circuit court to try again.

First though, here’s the story as reported by The Center Square.

(The Center Square) – A White County Illinois judge has found the state’s Firearms Owner’s ID card unconstitutional when enforced against someone possessing their firearms in their home. 

The case Illinois vs. Vivian Brown stems from a 2017 case where Brown separated from her husband. She possessed a single-shot .22 rifle in her home. Her husband filed a complaint against her alleging she fired the rifle inside the home. Police found the rifle had not been fired, but the state’s attorney charged her with possessing a firearm without a FOID card.

“After analyzing all the evidence in this matter, this Court finds that the Defendant’s activity of possessing a firearm within the confines of her home is an act protected by the Second Amendment,” wrote White County Resident Circuit Judge T. Scott Webb. “Additionally, there are no historical analogues to the FOID Act as required in Bruen.”

The judge further said in his ruling Monday, “the Court finds that any fee associated with exercising the core fundamental Constitutional right of armed self-defense within the confines of one’s home violates the Second Amendment.”

“This Court cannot reasonably construe the FOID Card Act in a manner that would preserve its validity,” Webb said. “In addition, the finding of unconstitutionality is necessary to this Court’s decision, and it cannot rest its decision upon an alternative ground.”

Will the Land of Lincoln’s high court finally hear the case and follow the rule of law to strike down the FOID Act that clearly runs afoul of not only the Second Amendment, but the US Supreme Court precedent in the Bruen decision?

Did the racists and bigots give up school segregation after the Brown v. Board of Education?

Spoiler alert:  They didn’t.

And we don’t see big gun control supporters falling in line to follow the rule of law in Bruen.

Here’s William Kirk on this:

It’s about 11 minutes long and brings everyone up to speed along with some solid analysis.