CHICAGO — Attorneys for gun rights supporters seeking to overturn Illinois’ sweeping gun ban faced tough questioning Thursday from a pair of federal appellate judges in Chicago.
The half-dozen challenges being heard in a consolidated case before a three-judge panel of the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals all hinge on whether the individual right to bear arms under the Second Amendment extends to the more than 100 types of guns that are subject to the state ban, including the popular AR-15 rifle, and to the high-capacity magazines that also are subject to the ban.
For those challenging the law, the answer is simple, particularly in light of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last year that struck down New York state’s concealed carry law and established that restrictions on firearm ownership must be consistent with the country’s historical traditions of regulation.
