Illinois House Rejects Bump Stock Ban

SPRINGFIELD, IL — The Illinois House rejected a broad ban on bump stocks and other devices that make semi-automatic weapons fire more rapidly Thursday. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Marty Moylan (D-Des Plaines), was rejected by a 54-48 vote during the veto session of the Illinios General Assembly. The law would have required 71 votes to pass.

Bump stocks are a type of gun modification developed to help people with disabilities operate firearms more easily, but they were also used by a man to rapidly shoot hundreds of concertgoers in Las Vegas earlier this month, killing 59 people in the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history. The gunman had reportedly modified 14 of his weapons with such devices, allowing them to fire much like fully-automatic weapons.

Moylan has also called for a statewide ban on assault weapons, magazines that can hold more than 10 rounds and large-caliber rifles.

But opponents of his bill said it was too broad and would criminalize a significant portion of guns used by law-abiding firearm owners and competition shooters.

"With this bill, you’re turning law abiding citizens into criminals," said Rep. C.D. Davidsmeyer, (R-Jacksonville), according to the State Journal-Register.

"I don't view this as a bump stock ban, I view this as a ban on 40 to 50 percent of the guns in the state," said Rep. Jerry Costello (D-Smithton), according to the Chicago Tribune. His district includes the World Shooting Recreational Complex, in downstate Sparta.

Costello said many of his own guns would be illegal under the law. "I have a major issue with that," he said, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Bump stock and trigger modification ban fails. pic.twitter.com/zFc0B5v1ZS
— Michon Lindstrom (@MichonLindstrom) October 26, 2017

Moylan's measure passed out of the Judiciary Committee Tuesday by a vote of 7-5 over Republican objections.

During floor debate Wednesday, Rep. Scott Drury (D-Highwood) reminded the House that the Las Vegas shooter had reportedly rented rooms above Lollapalooza in downtown Chicago earlier this summer and noted the National Rifle Association opposed the devices in the wake of the massacre, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

» Related: NRA Calls For Regulations On 'Bump Stock' Implicated In Las Vegas Shooting

Drury said approving the measure would show that "we value the right to live," according to the Sun-Times. "That we think it’s OK to send our children to Grant Park for Lollapalooza without worrying whether someone has converted their gun into a machine gun who is going to slaughter our kids.”

Rep. Chris Welch said the General Assembly would be having a "completely different" discussion if Lollapalooza had been targeted.

"We all know someone who attended Lollapalooza," Welch said, according to the Chicago Tribune. "The question is: What will it take for us to take action? Will it take your mother, father, son or daughter to be shot before you will speak up?"

The rejected bill would have also required a Firearm Owners Identification Card to buy Tannerite, the brand name of an explosive used for target practicing.

Moylan said he intends to continue trying to pass his proposal, but he did not say whether he would introduce a new bill of his own during November's veto session, the Sun-Times reported.

Another, less broad, measure, sponsored by Rep. Barbara Wheeler (R-Crystal Lake), has the support of the Illinois Rifle Association. It would only ban bump stocks, rather than any change that modifies the trigger mechanism.

"After speaking with firearm experts and the Illinois State Rifle Association, we all agreed that bump-fire stocks have no practical protection or sporting use and should be taken off the market,” Wheeler said.

Some Republicans say they’d support a ban on bump stocks, but not this bill, which also bans other trigger modifications. https://t.co/kiaMleiSDj
— Brian Mackey (@BrianMackey) October 26, 2017

_{Top photo: A bump stock device that fits on a semi-automatic rifle to increase the firing speed is installed on an AK-47. | Photo by George Frey | Getty Images}