Actually, this law wasn’t intended to punish crime victims, that’s the result of an ideology that demonizes legal gun owners–even to the point that they are considered more dangerous than violent sexual predators with known criminal records:
On Sunday, Governor Pat Quinn signed Illinois House Bill 1189, a law that will, among other things, impose requirements–on pain of criminal charges–on victims of crime. If your gun is stolen, and you fail to promptly notify the police, you are now the criminal.
Oh, by the way–confused by the initial description on the Illinois General Assembly website–that the bill “amends the Sex Offender Registration Act”? That’s what the bill would have done, before being amended to reflect Chicago-area Democrats’ view that gun owning crime victims pose a greater danger to the public than sex offenders do. (source)
We’re no stranger to this concept that Second Amendment-supporting, legal gun owners are somehow the problem with society.
Isn’t this twisted logic the rationale behind the latest push against “stand your ground” laws? You shouldn’t be able to stand your ground if you are assaulted, suffer a home invasion, or are the victim of any other violent crime. The alternative is to be victimized, possibly murdered. Anything but actually defending yourself, your loved ones, or your property.
Isn’t this the sort of thinking that prompted leftists to urge college students to get “rape whistles” rather than legally-owned guns or training in self-defense? And isn’t this twisted logic that it’s better to be a victim of a violent crime than someone who can legally use whatever force necessary to save oneself behind the laughable notion that women should “pee themselves” in order to discourage rapists?
After all, goes the “thinking,” it’s best to just arm yourself with some scissors when a gun-wielding maniac starts firing off rounds at a crowd than actually allowing anyone the means to shoot back, so the fact that Illinois is punishing gun owners for the “crime” of being the victim of a crime is really no surprise.
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This is just another time tested, Chicago statist law that targets the law abiding rather than the criminal. Given how the Cook County court system works, the first guy to get nabbed by this will do hard time while the guy who actually uses the stolen weapon to shoot someone will either do little jail time or have the charges dropped. Assuming they’re caught.
Illustrating Chicago’s Crime, Murder and Mayhem at heyjackass.com
Couldn’t agree with you more – the same judges that go to the gang leaders to get reelected time after time. The same judges that let criminals go repeatedly without jail time or very low bond. Until the citizens of Chicago get their heads out of their behinds and vote accordingly, Chicago WILL go the likes of Detroit.
Chicago is beyond repair. The liberal mentality has been supercharged through inbreeding!
Simple. Sell your gun, and when the law comes to grab it say “What the…it’s gone! How long do I have to report this to the police?”
Yet another law to punish those who register their guns.
Gee, what behavior are they rewarding here? Because they will get more of it.
All we got from 9/11 was the TSA (who have never stopped terrorism at airports. But harass passengers. And, now we know we can add what happened at Heathrow.0
It’s very Orwellian, but the names that get chosen are purposely designed so that some day our country gets taken over by a cabal. Per Jesse Ventura. Who has his own little video out.)
The whole trick has been in using words like “The Patriot Act.” And, “Homeland Security.” Which offers only a few hidden from view … people answerable to no one. That’s ahead.
What surprises me now is that people even bother to call the police? I can see you need a file report number for the IRS. But why involve the police? So that Dr. Bao can “funny up” the autopsy?
You didn’t notice the state of florida DENY to George Zimmerman the “detail” that it was his voice on the tape, screaming?
You know how the media played this thing. So you also know the media has already been co-opted.
Bad things done by elected officials is being done for a nefarious purpose. You just have to wonder, though, if their plans will go as smoothly as they think they will.
Per Jesse “The Body” Ventura, huh? Isn’t his show on Syfy? Or was it cancelled already?
Well, I’m convinced.
We need to use the correct label. These aren’t gun control laws. These are gun owner control laws.
“Gun control isn’t about guns; it’s about control.”
Philosophical question: if you are a gang member and someone steals your gun after a friendly neighborhood shoot-out should you still notify the police in a timely manner?
The law stipulates they’re supposed to notify MSNBC.
Illinois was dragged kicking and screaming into the real world of gun self-defense. Now it seems their plan is to legislate unreasonable penalties toward law-abidng gun owners to discourage gun ownership. It’s the Chicago way.
The best article ever written about gun control was Jeffrey Snyder’s “A Nation of Cowards”. It’s freely available on the web; contains powerful, concise arguments; and has stood the test of time.
In it, Snyder says:
Simple solution? Don’t register you gun. What the cops don’t know won’t hurt you.
Hello police? Yeah one of my guns got stolen. The serial number? It’s on the gun — you’ll have to ask the guy who stole it.
Oh, I was required to register my firearm with you? So I’m going to jail anyway?
lol, if you call the police and tell them your gun was stolen, you won’t be going to jail. you will be obeying the law and helping to catch a gun criminal. which is exactly what responsible gun ownership is.
They need to deal with the rise of gangs and their possession of illegal firearms instead of harassing legal gun owners.
actually, the bill is a great idea and I support it. most of the guns used to shoot people in Chicago are stolen guns. without the law, there would be nothing to stop straw purchasers from buying guns for other people. this stops the practice and criminalizes it.
No, it doesn’t criminalize the purchase of stolen weapons. It criminalizes the failure to report a theft.
…which is exactly what straw purchasers do. this is the first law that holds straw purchasers accountable for buying guns for criminals.
This will go before the Supreme Court.
impossible. it has nothing to do with the ownership of a gun. it only effects people who AREN’T owners of guns any more.
[…] tend to agree with Fuzzy Slippers at Legal Insurrection, who writes, “Isn’t this the sort of thinking that prompted leftists to urge college students […]
Straw purchasing of a gun is already illegal under federal law. And yes, I am sure many of the guns used illegally in Chicago are stolen. But many are obtained from friends or relatives. BUT-just possessing a stolen gun is already illegal, (especially if the person is a convicted felon)as is shooting someone with it. If a criminal is willing to possess the stolen gun and use it illegally, how will this law stop them? And how will this law help police stop crime? Someone please enlighten me.