Illinois Supreme Courts holds appeal of DeVore gun-ban case pending outcome of Caulkins case

[April 19, 2023]  By Greg Bishop | The Center Square

(The Center Square) – The Illinois Supreme Court has granted a motion to pause proceedings in a challenge of Illinois’ gun and magazine ban pending the outcome of a separate challenge before the state’s high court.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker enacted the state’s ban on certain semi-automatic weapons and magazines Jan. 10. The law has been challenged in both federal and state courts.

One of the first state-level lawsuits came from attorney Thomas DeVore. He secured temporary restraining orders for thousands of named plaintiffs and gun stores in two cases from Effingham County and one from White County. The first case, named Accuracy Firearms v. Pritzker, was appealed by the state to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. The appeals court decided the case challenging the law on equal protections was likely to advance on its merits.

Separately, a Macon County judge issued a final judgment that the law was unconstitutional based on the appeals court decision. That case was brought by state Rep. Dan Caulkins, R-Decatur. Because of the appeals court decision, the state appealed Caulkins’ case directly to the Illinois Supreme Court.

DeVore attempted to consolidate his cases with Caulkins’ case, a motion the Illinois Supreme Court denied. They are set to hear the Caulkins case in mid-May.

On March 31, the state filed an abeyance motion in the Accuracy Firearms case with the Illinois Supreme Court. The request was to hold the state’s appeal of a temporary restraining order in the DeVore case “pending the disposition” in the Caulkins case, “which is a direct appeal currently pending before this court.”

Inside the Macon County courtroom Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, during a hearing challenging Illinois' gun and magazine ban - Greg Bishop / The Center Square

“This case, in contrast, is in a preliminary posture following the grant of a temporary restraining order … and thus the petition for leave to appeal asks this Court to decide whether respondents are likely to succeed on the merits of their challenge,” the state’s motion said. “Therefore, the disposition of Caulkins, which will decide the merits of an equal protection challenge to the Act, will determine whether respondents are likely to succeed on their similar challenge, and may obviate the need for this Court to address the questions regarding the remaining TRO elements that will be presented if the petition for leave to appeal were to be granted.”

Tuesday, the Illinois Supreme Court granted the motion for abeyance, effectively holding off the appeal of the Effingham County TRO until the Caulkins case is resolved.

DeVore has filed several motions in his cases to subpoena documents from legislative leaders and law enforcement associations about discussion leading up to passage of the gun ban. He expects to have a hearing May 4 in Effingham County on those motions.

“And I’m very confident [the judge] is going to insist they turn over the information that I’m asking for because otherwise the public has no idea what they’re doing,” DeVore told WMAY Monday.

Greg Bishop reports on Illinois government and other issues for The Center Square. Bishop has years of award-winning broadcast experience and hosts the WMAY Morning Newsfeed out of Springfield.