Showdown looms on gun control (Illinois)

By Kevin McDermott, Post-Dispatch Springfield Bureau

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Springfield is headed toward a political showdown over guns, with both sides loading up like they haven't in years. The gun owners lobby is close to getting a floor debate in the Legislature on its pinnacle goal of allowing residents to carry concealed handguns in Illinois, which is one of just two states that still outlaw it. (Wisconsin is the other.)

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The pro-gun forces also note that, in all the states that have allowed concealed handguns in recent years (including Missouri), fears of a Wild West-type shootout erupting among legally armed citizens have yet to materialize. "That's been proven wrong," said Vandermyde. Mannard, the gun control advocate, counters: "We haven't seen mayhem in the street — that doesn't mean the potential isn't there."

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There are several concealed-carry measures moving through Springfield right now, including one that is poised for a full House vote. It would create the "Family and Personal Protection Act," allowing applicants who undergo strict training and background checks to carry concealed weapons. The idea has risen and fallen in Illinois in the past, but a key difference this time is the backing by the Illinois Sheriff's Association, which has previously stayed out of the debate.

"I think it will reduce crime," said St. Clair County Sheriff Mearl Justus, who was among the association members voting to back the idea. He said he had changed his mind about his earlier concerns that concealed weapons were an intrinsic danger. "I used to feel that way, but 48 states can't be wrong."

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:popcorn:

:)

Hammer. Nail. Direct hit.

Have states that allowed it seen a drop in crime, or are the sheriffs jumping to conclusions here?

But if it helps lower crime against ME, I am all for it.