Justices unanimously overturn decision that would have voided part of FOID law SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Supreme Court last week vacated a lower court ruling and reinstated a statute that authorizes the state to revoke a person’s Firearm Owners Identification card once they’ve been charged with a felony, even if they haven’t yet been convicted.
The court affirmed lower court rulings that threw out evidence of a small amount of marijuana discovered during a traffic stop in Henry County in 2020.
Police burden of proof in concealed carry violations also on the table.
Case plagued by procedural issues could be retried.
Caulkins and his co-plaintiffs claimed that participation in the decision by two state court justices violated the 14th Amendment guarantee of equal protection of the laws because they accepted millions of dollars of campaign contributions from gun restriction advocates.
Individuals can obtain their own records through other means.
Decades after conviction, man says limits on where he can live serve no valid purpose.
In a 4-3 decision Friday, the high court found that the Protect Our Communities Act does not violate the federal Constitution’s guarantee of equal protection of the law nor the state constitution’s bar on special legislation.
Illinois is set to become the first state in the nation to eliminate cash bail after the state Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that a landmark criminal justice reform law did not violate the state’s constitution. The high court said the law should now go into effect in September.
Supreme Court Chief Justice Mary Jane Theis delivered the court’s opinion, approved 5-2, saying that the constitution “does not mandate that monetary bail is the only means to ensure criminal defendants appear for trials or the only means to protect the public.”
Newly-elected Justices O’Brien, Rochford challenged over campaign donations.
Abolition of cash bail was placed on hold in December pending appeal to Supreme Court.
The future of cash bail in Illinois is in the hands of the state’s Supreme Court. Illinois passed a law that eliminated the use of cash bail starting on January 1, 2023 as part of the SAFE-T Act. Under the law judges could no longer require people to pay money in order to leave jail while
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