SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) 鈥 To the scores of sheriffs in Illinois who reportedly have vowed not to enforce the ban on semiautomatic weapons that took effect this week, Gov. J.B. Pritzker has a succinct answer: Yes, you will.
Nine in 10 of the state's sheriffs, joining with gun-rights advocates in declaring the prohibition unconstitutional, have sworn off zealous enforcement of the law. It of dozens of rapid-fire weapons and attachments and requires registration of those previously owned in response to the massacre at a which killed seven and wounded 30.
鈥淭hey took an oath of office to enforce the laws of the state of Illinois, and they will do so,鈥 Pritzker said of the sheriffs Friday in Chicago after signing a law .
鈥淭hese are folks who are entrusted by the public to enforce the law,鈥 the governor continued. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 get to choose which laws they enforce.鈥
Republican Sheriff Mark Landers of Logan County, just northeast of Springfield in central Illinois, was among the first of his peers to declare his stance, posting on that 鈥渢he right to keep and bear arms for defense of life, liberty and property is regarded as an inalienable right.鈥
Calling the law 鈥渁 clear violation of the 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution,鈥 Landers said that 鈥渘either myself nor my office will be checking to ensure that lawful gun owners register their weapons with the state nor will we be arresting or housing law-abiding individuals who have been charged solely with non-compliance of this act.鈥
Landers did not immediately return a call seeking comment Friday. But Jim Kaitschuk, executive director of the Illinois Sheriffs Association, said more than 90 sheriffs have issued similar statements based on a template he provided. Reaction has been overblown he said.
鈥淎ll they are saying is, 鈥榃e鈥檙e not going to knock on people's doors to ask whether they have registered their firearms,'鈥滽aitschuk said. 鈥淎nd if they're arrested solely on that charge, we will not house them in our jails until ordered to do so by a competent authority,鈥 meaning a judge.
Rep. Bob Morgan, the Deerfield Democrat who sponsored the legislation after witnessing the carnage as a participant in the Highland Park parade, said sheriffs are putting their front-line deputies at risk.
鈥淚t's disappointing to hear this from law enforcement officials whose own deputies' lives are at risk," Morgan said. 鈥淪tandard-issue bulletproof vests cannot stop a semiautomatic weapon round.鈥
Weapons obtained before the law took effect Tuesday night must be registered with the Illinois State Police by Jan. 1, 2024. The make, model and serial number must be reported and likely will be worked into software that state police use to record and track Firearm Owners Identification cards.
The Illinois State Rifle Association plans to file a federal lawsuit challenging the law as early as next week.
Pritzker, who called the sheriffs' stance 鈥減olitical grandstanding,鈥 said he's confident it will survive court tests, as semiautomatic weapons bans have in eight other states and Washington, D.C.
If the sheriffs are not up to the task, Attorney General Kwame Raoul said, someone else, such as the Illinois State Police, will be.
鈥淎s far as law enforcement agencies, there are overlapping jurisdictions as well,鈥 Raoul said. 鈥淪o if they don鈥檛 do their jobs, there are other people available to do the job.鈥
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