Illinois Ban Semi-Automatic Rifles, Will New York Follow?
Illinois is restricting guns from law abiding citizens despite Chicago having one of the worst track records for crime.
Gun violence remains to make headlines and nightly news. Illinois has banned certain rifles. The same lawyers who fought New York City's conceal carry ban are taking ths case to the Supreme Court as well.
There have been strict gun laws in the city of Chicago for years. Despite their strict regulations there over 1,000 gun murders in Chicago every year according to One Aim Illinois. In 2020 over 30,000 people were wounded with guns.
According to ABC 7, the entire state is enacting a new law in an effort to curb gun violence. They report the the governor signed an 'assault weapons' ban on January 10. An 'assault weapon' is a controversial term but is usually used to describe semi-automatic long rifles. These are rifles that don't operate any differently than most pistols on the market. ABC 7 also reported that just under half of the guns used in a crime were purchased in the state of Illinois. I was unable to find what amount of crime was made with a rifle over a pistol. My guess is the most of the crime and shootings are committed by a concealable pistol. Would an all out sales ban really fix the problem?
Will New York follow this model?
Semi-automatic rifles along with high capacity magazines are highly regulation in New York. Legally it is impossible to own a rifle that can fire over 10 rounds repeatedly unless you have special permission.
ABC reports that the same lawyers who argued against New York City's conceal carry ban are now fighting the ban in Illinois. Could New York State take a page out of Illinois' book?