Law Shield would like to inform our members that in a 32-page decision, U.S. District Court Judge Virginia M. Kendall concurred with the Second Amendment Foundation on two points in the lawsuit Ezell v. City of Chicago.
The SAF case challenged the city’s code by asserting that the regulations involving installation and operation of gun ranges inside city limits are burdensome.
Kendall concurred with SAF’s positions on the city’s zoning and requirements regarding hours of operation. SAF had earlier defeated the city’s total ban on gun ranges in 2011.
The plaintiffs’ attorney said, “Every day on which Chicago loses some of its unconstitutional laws is a better day than the one before. This latest decision brings Chicago that much closer to the rest of America, where responsible, law-abiding people can practically access gun ranges for safety training and recreation. We are studying our options for improving this positive outcome.”
In her ruling, Judge Kendall noted that Chicago police officials “admitted that they had no data or empirical evidence that any criminal impact would occur due to the presence of a firing range, or that it would be lessened by placing ranges in manufacturing districts.” Indeed, plaintiff’s expert Lorin Kramer “testified that he was unaware of any location throughout the country where crime increased as a result of a gun range in that location.”
Additional plaintiffs are Rhonda Ezell, for whom the case is named, plus Joseph Brown, William Hespen, Action Target, Inc., and the Illinois State Rifle Association. Ezell, a 44-year-old Chicago native, is a life member of the Illinois State Rifle Association and a victim of crime in her South Side neighborhood.
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