Keeping firearms in Chicago

[THE DOC 44]

My son's girlfriend lives in Bucktown , Chicago , can she buy and keep a shotgun
in her appartment ? If so how ? I have trawled through the gun law web sites ,howevever the Chicago laws leave me puzzled . Please help .

 

[wdlsguy]

From the Chicago Police Department's website:

As a private citizen, you can own a long gun, but not a handgun or an assault weapon, in the City of Chicago. You must have a current Firearm Owner's Identification (FOID) card from the Illinois State Police, and you must register your firearms with the City's Gun Registration Program, 3510 S. Michigan Avenue, Room 1027 SE, between the hours of 7:30 am and 4:30 pm. You can call the Gun Registration Program at (312) 745-5166 for more information.

FOID information from the Illinois State Police:

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

 

[Francisco2]

Here's a "copy and paste" of a response I gave earlier this year.

Any shotgun (with a barrel length of 18" or greater) or rifle (with a barrel length of 16" or greater) that is bolt-action, pump action, level action, break action, or single shot is legal as long as it is registered with the CPD. Forms are available at the main headquarters at 35th & Michigan. A semi-auto shotgun with a magazine capacity of 5 rounds or less with a standard stock is legal too. You can only possess ammunition of the caliber or gauge for the firearm you have registered.

She is also required to give 2 passport photos, a notary public's signature and seal, and a $20 check or money order.
The state requires that you must have a FOID card in order to touch, possess, purchase, or service any firearm. You can download an appilcation from the IL state police website and do the grunt work yourself, or have one processed for you at any gun store in the state.

 

[thexrayboy]

Gee all that paperwork for a simple shotgun. Why not just ask for the first born child.

 

[anotherinkling]

Just a little clarification...

...you may pick up the registration form at any CPD station. No need to trek downtown and waste money on parking.

I started a thread awhile back re: the gun registration process here in Chicago. Might help out.

If she's ever interested in getting something besides a shotgun, it would be worthwhile checking out the collected ordinances at this link from the Illinois State Police site. Don't bother purchasing or trying to register a firearm unless you're certain it's legal here. There's a bit of entrapment going on with the Gun Registration Program, I'm afraid. Not the CPD's fault but our lame local government.

 

[sctman800]

Quote: "Gee all that paperwork for a simple shotgun. Why not just ask for the first born child."

We are talking about Chicago, I am sure it has allready been discussed.
Jim.

 

[Big Gay Al]

I am SO GLAD, I moved away from there. With CCW and in spite of handgun registration, Michigan is gun paradise compared to Chicago, and the entire state of Illinois.

They've tightened the FOID thing up in the last 10 or so years. But I recall some news about how more than a few convicts, Still in prison were issued FOID cards, and at least one guy got one for his dog, complete with a picture of the animal in question. But that goes back more than a decade.

 

[Manedwolf]

Easiest way to have a gun in Chicago is to be a criminal.

 

[THE DOC 44]

Many thanks for this info. I will follow up on all of the advice and links . The Chicago laws sound tougher than the ones that we have here in the U.K. and I thought that was impossible , guess I was wrong

 

[Big Gay Al]

The difference is, your laws in the UK are for an entire country. Our laws vary from one state to another, and in some states, by the city also.

 

[ezypikns]

To make sure I understand completely,....

you can't even OWN a handgun in Chicago?

 

[antsi]

------quote-------
you can't even OWN a handgun in Chicago?
-------------------

Or a so-called "assault weapon."

The way they accomplished this de-facto ban is a classic catch-22.

Any firearm you posess in Chicago has to be registered with the city. The city does not offer registration for handguns or so-called "assault weapons."

 

[Big Gay Al]

UNLESS, you're one of the privileged class. A Police officer, security officer, Chicago city alderman, the mayor, or some other class that needs a handgun for their work.

 

[Francisco2]

A resident of Chicago can own a handgun, they just cannot have it within city limits. The only handguns that can "legally" be within city limits are those owned by CPD, any LEO, state licensed security firm and guards, anyone that has a PERC card (PI's,), or those already registered before the 1982 cutoff date. Oh and no handgun magazines with over a 12 round capacity.

So called "assault weapons" have been illegal in Cook County since 1993. There's a list somewhere that specifies which "assault weapons" are prohibitted. The fines for posession of these arms are ludicrous, something like $10k fine plus jail time. Someone else call fill you in on this better than I can.

 

[Deanimator]

Or a so-called "assault weapon."

The way they accomplished this de-facto ban is a classic catch-22.

Any firearm you posess in Chicago has to be registered with the city. The city does not offer registration for handguns or so-called "assault weapons."

And be sure to point this out every time some ninny gibbers incoherently to you about "reasonable gun controls" and "registration". Do what I do, ask them, "What would I need to do in order to LAWFULLY move to Chicago with my handguns?" It's a hoot watching them stammer, mumble and outright LIE... that is if they'll answer at all...

I left Apartheid Chicago in '86. I go back once a year to visit my mother. Every time I go, I feel like a Jew heading back to Germany... in 1938.

 

[Don Gwinn]

Dad once sold a handgun to a felon in Illinois. He had a valid FOID card and passed the phone-in check. He'd given them a slightly different name, maybe the wrong middle name.

Conversely, my high school friend was denied a FOID because he had the same first and last name as a wanted felon from Rockford.

So, yes, it definitely happened. I couldn't say how common it is nowadays.

 

[HC_Jack]

The other thing to watch out for is that you need to get your registration before you bring your gun into Chicago (it's deceiving because they have a date of acquisition field on the form and any date in the past is grounds for rejection.) I had to go through an administrative hearing to clear that situation up, which added about 10 weeks to the process.