Ill. House Votes To Keep List Of Gun Licenses Secret
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CBS) -- The Illinois House has approved a proposal to keep the state's list of registered gun owners secret.
The House voted 98-12 Friday in favor of legislation to prohibit the Illinois State Police from releasing information on people who have Firearm Owner Identification cards.
Last month, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan ruled that the Illinois State Police must release the names FOID card holders because it is public information not exempted from access laws under the Freedom of Information Act.
Gun rights activists have argued that releasing the names of FOID card holders would essentially give criminals a road map to homes in Illinois where people have guns to steal or where people have no guns to defend themselves against a robber.
"I think there's a real concern among people who own guns, that if that list is released, it would be a shopping list for criminals who want to steal guns," State Rep. Richard Morthland (R-Moline) said last month at a committee hearing on the proposal he sponsored. "And there is a perception out there that that is exactly what the consequence of this release would be. And if that's the perception, there is a risk of gun violence."
The proposal, House Bill 3500, now goes to the Illinois Senate for consideration.
