Just applied for IL FOID card

[whm1974]

Anyway, guns really weren't THAT important to my dad, he enjoyed them, but the woman

Anyway, guns really weren't THAT important to my dad, he enjoyed them, but the woman he married hated them, and I guess his guns weren't important enough to him to make an issue of it

I would disagree with this. Your dad should have put his foot down and kept the guns. Woman will keep testing thier men to see how far they can controll them. Your dad lost on this issue, what else did you mom made your dad do?

Bill Meadows

 

[Quick Draw McGraw]

Mr. Meadows

I still must not be making myself clear. My dad didn't concede the issue, he just didn't care about his guns enough to even make an issue out of it in the first place. He didn't lose anything. Just because YOU think that my dad should have put his foot down doesn't mean that he thought so. It wasn't an issue of control, and I take offense that someone that knows nothing about me or my family would ask a thing such as, "What else did you mom made your dad do?" Frankly, if my father was as much of a gun-lover as the folks on this board, there would be guns in the house. I happen to agree with you that the husband should not concede such things if they feel they should not, but my father does not have the same vigor for owning firearms as the people here. He's not an anti, he doesn't think guns are evil, or anything like that. If you were to say that my father should take more seriously his duty to protect our family, I would have to agree. My mother has stayed home with my brothers and I all of our lives, and my father works harder than anyone I know in order to provide for his family. Right now he's paying every cent of my college tuition. I owe him more than anybody else in my life besides Jesus Christ. My father understands his responsibilities to provide for his family, with perhaps his single fault in this matter being that he does not see the full importance of being prepared to defend his loved ones from physical harm from someone who has a weapon.

This, however, is not a case of my mother controlling my father, but rather of my father not realizing the importance of firearms for self-defence and freedom. An important issue, yes, but you have misunderstood.

Another, thing, Mr. Meadows. Not all women are as you say. My mother does not control my father, nor has she ever attempted to. I have been with my girlfriend for over three and a half years, and she has never, and will never attempt to control me. YES, I AM SURE! I agree that there are women like that out there, sir, but if that is the only type you have met, I am here to tell you that there are women out there who are different.

Mr. Meadows, I do not wish to offend you or to begin a flame war here, and perhaps I am being too defensive. However, I respect my father more than anyone else on earth, and I love my family very dearly, so I feel compelled to speak in his, and our, defense.

I suppose I have already hi-jacked your thread enough, so I will save my FOID card troubles for another place.

Respectfully,
Ben

 

[bad_dad_brad]

FOIDs have been required in Illinois since 1960's. Course back then it was more like a fishing or hunting license.

Regardless, as stated in this thread, you have to have one to own firearms in Illinois, and yes, you have to have one to handle a firearm at a gun store, and yes, you can't buy ammo without one either.

Took about 3 weeks to renew mine last September - no big deal, I go through my dealer, and as Don Gwinn has pointed out, reputable dealers do not "bundle" their paperwork.

As far as a loaded clip, as long as it is not in the gun, it is supposed to be legal, but a lot of LEO's don't know this. The gun must be in a case, whatever that means. There is a nice brochure that the state publishes that I keep in my glove box, so that Mr. Law can educate himself.

Check it out:

http://www.isp.state.il.us/foid/firearms.cfm

 

[JoeWang]

1. Make sure your CURRENT FOID card is always with you when transporting a firearm. The ISP is notoriously forgetful about who has one and who does not when considering an "unconviktedzky konvict", er, sorry, a citizen for detainment. Especially when on their highway. Think of it as crossing gang turf.

2. Always travel with ammo and firearms in separate locked compartments.

3. Don't speed, switch lanes, etc. without signals. Obey all local traffic laws.

4. Lock all but your primary home defense long gun(s) up securely, especially if you have children. The State and COC is keen on providing legal help to civil plaintiffs sue homeowners when homeowners use handguns to help protect themselves.

5. Don't be a straw man/woman. Do your transfers through an FFL.

6. Do not travel through COC with an improper firearm.

 

[dwain]

Don't forget to sign your FOID. The space to sign is on the side of the card. Very hard to see. Many people do not know there is a place to sign. I've heard if they're not signed, you might as well not have one in the eyes of some LEO.

 

[Jeff White]

Hi JoeWang,
I'd like to clear up a couple of misconceptions. FOID data is in LEADS. Any Illinois peace officer can check to see if a subject has a valid FOID card. So there is no way to be forgetful about who has them. I am sure that at some point in time and at someplace in the state someone was charged with the misdemeanor of not having his FOID in his possession. But I can tell you that in my experience, it's not common. If the computer check shows someone has a valid FOID then a warning is usually given.

There is no requirement in Illinois to transfer firearms through an FFL. There is a record keeping requirement. You have to keep a record of the weapon, and name address and FOID number of who you transferred it to for 10 years. Again, I've never heard of anyone being prosecuted for this. I suppose it has happened.

It is legal to carry a semi auto in a case with a loaded magazine in the case with it. The magazine can't be inserted into the weapon though. A lot of peace officers weren't aware of this until the last few years. There may be some that still aren't, but I do know that that portion of the law has been met with a refusal to prosecute and charges eventually being dropped in one of the collar counties and a Southern Illinois county.

Illinois is far from being the worst state when it comes to firearms. And when you get away from Chicago, you'll find that the police aren't exactly the gestapo when it comes to the gun laws.

Jeff

 

[whm1974]

I suppose I have already hi-jacked your thread enough, so I will save my FOID card troubles for another place.

You didn't hijacked my thread. and I didn't mean to insult your mom or dad.

5. Don't be a straw man/woman. Do your transfers through an FFL.

That's a little parnoid. Although I won't be buying a gun from anyone that doesn't have a FOID
cardand/or that I don't know.

Don't forget to sign your FOID. The space to sign is on the side of the card. Very hard to see. Many people do not know there is a place to sign. I've heard if they're not signed, you might as well not have one in the eyes of some LEO.

I'll keep this in mind

You have to keep a record of the weapon, and name address and FOID number of who you transferred it to for 10 years. Again, I've never heard of anyone being prosecuted for this. I suppose it has happened.

I wonder how many people really keep these records for 10 years? Records can get lost moving, house burned down, etc. I do have friends that buy most of their guns "off paper" and a few cheap ones form a dealer so if there is ever a gun ban they'll surarnder those.

It is legal to carry a semi auto in a case with a loaded magazine in the case with it. The magazine can't be inserted into the weapon though. A lot of peace officers weren't aware of this until the last few years. There may be some that still aren't, but I do know that that portion of the law has been met with a refusal to prosecute and charges eventually being dropped in one of the collar counties and a Southern Illinois county.

Some LEO know this but may harrass gun owners anyway. My stepfather when I was living with him always transported his ammo and guns in seprate bags.

Thanks guys

Bill Meadows

 

[Bix]

Welcome to THR, 1974, and hello to all my fellow Illinois residents. I beleive this was already mentioned, but I would again recommend that you review your local ordinances before purchasing any firearm. Many communities in this state ban specific firearms, from Evil Black Rifles to handguns. While I think this is largley confined to the areas around Chicago, it is always best to check.

 

[whm1974]

To my knowage Granite City only has the "discharge of a firearm insiding city limits" thing. A lot of people here own "EBRs" and handguns, so I shouldn't have any problem. I'll check anyway though.

I'll bet you that a lot of people in those picko communities own "baned" guns but just don't tell anybody. Pensonlly I would move if I could.

Bill Meadows

 

[Don Gwinn]

With all due respect, Jeff, I've never met (face to face) an officer who knew the law on transportation before I told him. Frankly I think the ones I've told have been skeptical Then again, I don't live as far south as you do. It's only a couple hundred miles, but your part of Illinois is more like the south with a bit of the midwest thrown in, while we're definitely the midwest without much flavor of the south. Must be a prairie thing.

One officer I did not tell about the law, and I've kicked myself about it ever since, was a state trooper who pulled me over on I-55 coming back from the Chicago area. I was speeding and deserved a ticket for speeding, no question. He asked me to get out of the car and whether I had any weapons. I told him I had my pocketknife and a couple of unloaded pistols in the cases in the backseat. In retrospect, I probably could have just said "no" but at the time it didn't occur to me.
The officer asked me if the guns were all "legal and locked up securely and stuff like that" and I, selectively hearing only "legal" replied in the positive. Then I immediately kicked myself, because of course the guns were not "locked up" nor is that required by law, and if he checked, I'd probably have squandered the tentative good will it seemed like we were building. I could even see him arresting me if he really believed that the law required the guns to be locked up AND (more importantly) that I had lied to him to hide the fact that I was breaking such a minor law.
Would have been much better off, I think, to say "no" and explain why the law didn't require locking the guns up for transportation.

But he wasn't terribly worried about it--as you say, he was mistaken, but he wasn't the Gestapo-- and after taking a quick look at the inside of the car through the open door nothing else was said about the weapons. He even gave me a warning for speeding.

It was fairly painless as lessons about listening carefully when addressed by the po-po go.

 

[44Brent]

Don:

I think I'll make photocopies of my booklet I received from the State Police titled "Transport Your Gun Legally", and stick it in my pistol case, just in case.

 

[Kingcreek]

I think I'll make photocopies of my booklet I received from the State Police titled "Transport Your Gun Legally", and stick it in my pistol case, just in case.[/QUOTE
Probably not a bad idea.
I think most of this is common sense. If you're an average joe and not wearing gang colors cooking meth in the back of the van the LEO usually isn't really concerned. If Barney Fife pulls you over and wants to make something out of nothing then you're in for it anyway. I have had many pleasant or atleast reasonable interactions with IL LEOs and only 2 "Barneys".
One was a small town cop that was out to make a bust of somebody/anybody (me) until a county deputy stopped to assist and told him he should go find a real problem. The other was a state trooper that treated me like a DUI after I was run off the road by an 18 wheeler on I-80. He asked me about drugs or weapons about 5 times and each time I said NO. He was really ticking me off- wasn't at all interested in my description of the truck and I had already decided I wasn't going to consent to a search of anything. (Glock 23 in my overnight bag.)
Luckily in this rural area, I know most of the LE folks from non-criminal casual encounters and folks round here still have some common sense. Daughter lives in Cook county but thats another world.

 

[whm1974]

If I get that booklet I'll keep it with the gun case. To protect myself
I'll transport the gun in a locked case with ammo in another locked case.

I''m wondering about this. If I'm driving and get pulled over do the police have the right to search my car without my permission? Or can I refuse and tell them to get a warrent?

Bill Meadows

 

[Jeff White]

Bill,
No the police can't search your car without permission. The Illinois Supreme Court ruled back in Novemebr that they can't even ask for consent to search unless they can articulate what the reasonable suspicion was that there was something illegal in the car.

However, if an officer insists on detaining you and searching your vehicle, let him. The side of the road is no place to get into constitutional arguements over the fourth amendment and how it applies in Illinois. After it's over, get an attorney and let them sort it out in court.

The chances of an officer asking for consent to search are slimmer now, so it's most likely something you won't have to deal with. If he does, just say no.

Jeff

 

[whm1974]

thanks Jeff. When I get a car it will a passager car that I can make hiding
places so I don't have to worry about theft when I park the car somewhere

Bill Meadows