The future of the Firearm Owner ID card in Illinois is already in doubt thanks to a circuit judge who recently declared the state-issued permission slip incompatible with the Second Amendment, but the Democrats in control of the state legislature aren’t expected to push for its repeal anytime soon. They still contend that the ID card, which is required to possess a firearm in the home, is a valuable tool that prevents criminals from accessing firearms.
Second Amendment advocate and Guns Save Life executive director John Boch, on the other hand, says a recent triple shooting in the state demonstrates just how worthless the FOID mandate is when it comes to public safety.
A Bloomington Police Department news release last month said a firearm used in a triple homicide-suicide was recovered at the scene under the body of Christopher Simmons. The firearm was legally purchased by Simmons in 2021. In 2022, Simmons’ FOID card was revoked, and he was prohibited from legally possessing firearms.
Guns Save Life Executive Director John Boch said Simmons shouldn’t have had guns.
“In this case, a couple of officers could have knocked on that door and asked about his gun … that might have gotten the gun, but they didn’t do that, and the state police didn’t do that,” said Boch.
… Simmons was released on “conditional discharge” for 18 months in September 2023 for a misdemeanor gun charge. Boch said probation officers, unlike local law enforcement, don’t need a court order to search and seize firearms.
“If anybody’s on probation and parole, their respective probation/parole agents can search their homes without a warrant or anything at any time, that’s part of the agreement for these people being out of custody,” said Boch.
Boch said local law enforcement could have contacted Simmons’ probation officer to conduct a search after being notified of his failure to submit a Firearm Disposition record.
There are a couple of issues here. First and foremost, violent criminals don’t give a damn about obtaining a FOID card or adhering to its requirements… including disclosing to law enforcement when their FOID card has been revoked. But the FOID statute also essentially runs on the honor system when it comes to revocations. Unless law enforcement knows that a Firearm Disposition record should have been submitted but was not, there’s really no way for authorities to know if someone like Simmons is in violation of the statute.
Probation and parole agents have the power to conduct warrantless searchers of probationers’ homes, as Boch notes, but given the crushing number of individuals they’re tasked with supervising, it’s highly unlikely that agents will take that invasive and time-consuming step unless they have good reason to believe they’ll find a probation violation during their hands-on investigation.
Unfortunately, instead of recognizing the inherent flaws in the FOID card system, the Democrats in Springfield are far more likely to double down on their gun control approach with additional licensing and reporting requirements along with invasive oversight of lawful gun owners. That approach won’t do anything to stop criminals intent on committing violent acts (with or without a gun), but it will have a chilling effect on Illinois residents who want to keep and bear arms to protect themselves from the violent offenders who don’t give a damn about the state’s restrictive gun policies.
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