A federal judge prohibited Illinois from enforcing its ban on assault weapons, marking a victory for Second Amendment activists and reversing a law signed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D-IL).
U.S. District Judge Stephen McGlynn ruled Friday in favor of plaintiffs who argued that the Protect Illinois Communities Act (PICA) was “an unconstitutional infringement” of Second Amendment rights.
“Government may not deprive law-abiding citizens of their guaranteed right to self-defense as a means of offense,” McGlynn wrote in a 168-page opinion that suggested people use guns to defend themselves because “sometimes,” there is “no one” else to protect them.
The ruling, which will not go into effect for 30 days, will likely be appealed. It comes after Pritzker signed the assault weapons ban into law in January 2023, a move that affected more than 29,000 AR-15 gun owners in…
