In the wake of the Parkland, Florida, mass shooting, Rep. John Cabello (R-Machesney Park) questioned how effective newly proposed gun legislation really would be in Illinois.
After the introduction of SB1657, presented by Rep. Kathleen Willis (D-Addison) on behalf of Rep. Deborah Conroy (D-Villa Park), which mandates gun licenses that will require $1,000 fee every five years, videotaping of firearm owners identification (FOID) card purchases and the background checks for employees who sell firearms, Cabello pointed out to the sponsor what issuing certification would exactly mean at the Wednesday House floor debate.
“The county sheriff must separately and independently confirm in writing that the applicant is in compliance with all applicable federal, state and local law including your proposed gun dealing licensing law,” Cabello said. “My question to you is can you point out to any precedent in Illinois law where a state licensing law grants simultaneous jurisdiction to state and local authorities?”
Rep. John Cabello
“Not off the top of my head I can’t, but then again, I am not the licensing agency,” Willis said.
“I think the point is that we can’t find one,” Cabello said, then questioning why a sheriff’s deputy must only consider a standard of suspicion when enquiring or authorizing a gun license. “All law enforcement agencies have a probable cause standard. Why are we lowering that to a reasonable suspicion?”
Willis was not sure what section Cabello was even referring to and took some time to pull it up, but even then had to have it explained to her.
“I am being told that is the standard we use for sheriff’s departments to place objections on all licenses,” Willis said.
“I would have to disagree,” Cabello said, adding everybody can have a different definition of suspicion rather than probable cause.
Though Willis said there will be uniformity to the best procedure process, Cabello countered saying he was told before the House floor debate that the members of the Illinois Licensing Department informed him that “there was no way, shape or form that they can afford to do this, and they do not have the manpower to do that.”
Speaking to the bill, Cabello said all he sees with SB1657 and other gun legislation that was passed on Wednesday, goes against “law-abiding citizens.”
“It seems that we don’t really want to get to the portion of what solves this,” Cabello said. “If you want to solve mass shootings, maybe we should look at the General Assembly together at a student protection act.”
Cabello said until GOP and Democratic lawmakers really sit down together to find a real solution, innocent people will die.
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