"The intention is to turn loose attorneys from activist organizations to tie up individuals and dealers in court and destroy the industry," said Mark Westrom, president of Geneseo-based Arma Lite Inc. - as quoted at the end of the article.
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BY JOHN O'CONNOR ASSOCIATED PRESS Advertisement
SPRINGFIELD -- Senate Democrats resurrected several failed gun control bills Wednesday and pushed them through committee to set up a floor showdown before week's end.
The measures, from limiting handgun purchases to letting victims of gun violence sue manufacturers and dealers, are at the crux of Chicago Mayor Richard Daley's efforts to reduce violence on his city's streets.
The Senate Executive Committee approved them 7-6. The votes fell mostly along party lines, with Democratic Sen. George Shadid of Peoria joining the Republican opponents.
Each of the four bills was rejected earlier this session by the Judiciary Committee. Republicans complained about giving the bills a second chance in another committee.
"The gun issue is not going to go away. It's not going to solve anything for the city of Chicago," Republican Leader Frank Watson of Greenville said. "All it does is create problems for people who abide by the law."
One bill would prohibit purchasing more than one handgun a month, with some exceptions. Another would require statewide licensing of firearms dealers so that state police could monitor their sales.
The other two answer Chicago's problem in the Illinois Supreme Court, which said last fall that the city had no right to sue the firearms industry and suburban gun shops that allegedly sold guns to undercover police officers who posed as gang members buying for criminals.
Under the bills, governments and people injured by guns would be able to sue dealers and manufacturers that repeatedly ignore the law.
"You can sue someone for improper maintenance of a swimming pool or for operating a tanning salon without a permit, but if a dealer sells a gun to a criminal, it can't be declared a nuisance," city of Chicago lobbyist John Dunn said.
Half a dozen Illinois gun manufacturers said they might take offers to move to other states if the bills pass.
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