By PETER HANCOCK
Capitol News Illinois
phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com

A federal judge in Rockford has declared a state law banning concealed firearms on public transit systems unconstitutional – at least as it applies to four individuals who challenged it in court.

But the law remains in effect for everyone else as the parties in the case consider their next steps.

In a decision released Friday, Judge Iain D. Johnston said under current U.S. Supreme Court standards, the law violates the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

“After an exhaustive review of the parties’ filings and the historical record, as required by Supreme Court precedent, the Court finds that Defendants failed to meet their burden to show an American tradition of firearm regulation at the time of the Founding that would allow Illinois to prohibit Plaintiffs—who hold concealed-carry permits—from carrying concealed handguns for self-defense onto the CTA and Metra,” he wrote.

Johnston cited the 2022 Supreme Court decision, New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, which struck down a century-old law in New York requiring individuals to show “proper cause” for needing to carry a firearm before they could be issued a concealed carry permit.

The Illinois case challenged a portion of the state’s 2013 Firearm Concealed Carry Act, which allows certain individuals to obtain permits to carry concealed firearms in many public places.

But the law also lists several prohibited areas where it remains illegal to carry concealed weapons, including “Any bus, train, or form of transportation paid for in whole or in part with public funds, and any building, real property, and parking area under the control of a public transportation facility paid for in whole or in part with public funds.”

Four individuals who hold concealed carry permits filed suit in 2022 to challenge the law, saying it prevented them from carrying their firearms for self-defense on mass transit trains and buses in the Chicago metropolitan area. They included Benjamin Schoenthal, of DeKalb County; Mark Wroblewski, of DuPage County; Joseph Vesel, of suburban Cook County; and Douglas Winston, of Lake County.

Johnston’s ruling held that the law is unconstitutional, but only as it applies to the four plaintiffs, meaning the law remains in effect for everyone else.

A spokesperson for Raoul, a defendant in the case, said that office would likely appeal the ruling. A spokesperson for Cook County State’s Attorney Kimberly Foxx, who was also named as a defendant, declined to comment.

Asked about the decision at an unrelated event Tuesday, Gov. JB Pritzker said he disagreed with Johnston’s opinion. He said the rights protected under the Second Amendment are not absolute and that there should be limits on the kinds of weapons people are allowed to carry and where those weapons should be permitted.

“So it’s clear that there are some misguided decisions that get made at the circuit court level, the federal court level, and I’m hoping that it will be overturned along the way, if it has to all the way the Supreme Court,” he said. “It will be disappointing if they uphold this. But I’m hopeful that the law that was passed in Illinois a number of years ago, that’s frankly done a lot to keep people safe, will be upheld.”

In July, the Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of challenges to the state’s 2021 ban on assault-style weapons and large-capacity magazines, at least for the time being. Several lawsuits seek preliminary injunctions to block enforcement of that law while the cases are being tried, but the court said it would not hear those challenges until after the lower courts have conducted their trials.

Read more: U.S. Supreme Court won’t hear challenge to Illinois’ assault weapons ban, for now

The first of those trials is scheduled to begin Sept. 16 in U.S. District Court in East St. Louis.

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service covering state government. It is distributed to hundreds of newspapers, radio and TV stations statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation, along with major contributions from the Illinois Broadcasters Foundation and Southern Illinois Editorial Association.