SCOTUS denies Caulkins' Second Amendment, conflict of interest case

[January 09, 2024]  By Greg Bishop | The Center Square

(The Center Square) – The U.S. Supreme Court denied Illinois state Rep. Dan Caulkins’ challenge to Illinois’ gun and magazine ban that included questions about conflicts of interest at the Illinois Supreme Court.

Following Friday’s conference of the U.S. Supreme Court, the court released an order list Monday where it denied requests for review from about 200 separate cases. One of those was the case Caulkins v. Pritzker, which was decided in favor of the state of Illinois in August by the Illinois Supreme Court.

“The Supreme Court’s refusal to hear our case does not change the fact two of the Illinois Supreme Court justices, who accepted millions of dollars in donations from gun control advocates, should have recused themselves from voting,” Caulkins, R-Decatur, said in a statement.

Caulkins had challenged Illinois’ gun and magazine ban that went into effect a year ago this week. After getting final judgment in his favor from a Macon County judge last March, the state appealed directly to the Illinois Supreme Court.

In April, Caulkins motioned for Illinois Supreme Court Justices Mary O’Brien and Elizabeth Rochford to recuse themselves. As candidates for the Illinois Supreme Court in 2022, O’Brien and Rochard’s campaign accounts received $1 million each from Gov. J.B. Pritzker, and six-figured donations and other contributions from the Democratic leaders of the legislative branch.

The Illinois justices and the Illinois Supreme Court denied Caulkins’ recusal motion and in May heard the case challenging the gun ban law on the grounds it violates special legislation provisions, equal protections and the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. The Illinois Supreme Court sided with the state in August with a split decision.

The Illinois Supreme Court
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Caulkins then appealed the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court, which was taken up for consideration by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who requested a response from the state. Attorneys for the state declined to offer a response in December. The case was then forwarded to the U.S. Supreme Court conference. That came before a motion for an emergency injunction was denied by the U.S. Supreme Court last month.

Monday’s orders list showed the denial of the U.S. Supreme Court to hear Caulkins’ case.

“The denial of a hearing does not mean SCOTUS approves the conduct of the Justices,” Caulkins said Monday. “It is not just that they received donations from gun control advocates, but it also is the exorbitant amount of money they received in donations. There is no question, they should have recused themselves.”

In the aggregate, Caulkins said the sum of more than $2.5 million in direct contributions and $7.3 million in indirect contributions called into question the justices’ impartiality and independence.

“We are looking at our legal options moving forward, and we will be making an announcement soon,” Caulkins said. “Judges must preserve both the reality and appearance of impartiality. It is impossible for these justices to be impartial after accepting millions of dollars in campaign cash from gun control advocates and after receiving the support of a radical organization like G-PAC. I will not stop in demanding real justice as opposed to the rigged outcome the Illinois Supreme Court handed down.”

Pritzker celebrated the decision on social media.

"Another attempt to overturn our assault weapons ban has been DENIED!," Pritzker said on X, formerly Twitter. "No matter the roadblocks, I'll never stop fighting against the gun lobby's dangerous agenda."