DeVore plans to pursue separate state-level challenge to Illinois’ gun ban

[August 14, 2023]  By Greg Bishop | The Center Square

(The Center Square) – Friday’s ruling upholding Illinois’ gun and magazine ban by the Illinois Supreme Court may not be the last word in state-level challenges.

State Rep. Dan Caulkins, R-Decatur, who brought the case, said he was disappointed. While the pending federal challenge focuses on the Second Amendment, Caulkins’ challenge focused on equal protections.

“I’m a [Firearms Owner Identification] card holder, why am I treated differently from another FOID card holder. Well, because that FOID card holder happens to be in law enforcement? Why is that any different than me,” Caulkins said Friday, noting he served in the military for 22 years.

Caulkins said his case didn’t deal with the issue of the three readings rule, which requires legislation to be read publicly for three separate days before it passes each the House and Senate, but that was an issue for two of the dissenting justices in Friday’s opinion against his case.

“This law never went through the three reading process, why does it even pass constitutional muster from that standpoint,” Caulkins said. “Wasn’t our pleadings. That’s Mr. DeVore’s pleadings.”

Attorney Thomas DeVore during a political rally near Quincy, Illinois, in June. - Greg Bishop / The Center Square

Attorney Thomas DeVore said he plans to pursue the three readings rule challenge with his state-level cases consolidated in Effingham County. While temporary restraining orders for thousands of his clients could be dissolved soon, he plans to mount evidence to prove the equal protections argument.

“So what they said is ‘Dan Caulkins, you didn’t bring us any facts to show that you are similar to these exempt categories so for that reason you lose,’” DeVore told The Center Square. “Well, we’re going to build that case in our case if that proceeds.”

Some of the evidence DeVore plans to work at discovering includes the levels of firearms training for those in the exempt class like prison wardens, security guards and those in law enforcement.

“I wanna see the record of every law enforcement officer in the state of Illinois,” DeVore said. “What are they trained on? What guns do they handle, et cetera, et cetera, so we can build that similarity argument that we desperately need in order to win this case in front of the Illinois Supreme Court, to even have a chance to win it.”

The next steps in DeVore’s challenges will be the status of the TROs. Then, he’s going to push for the case to continue with discovery.