Illinois concealed carry laws are among the most restrictive in the United States. But another county prosecutor in Illinois has approved allowing residents to carry concealed weapons.
Randolph County State’s Attorney Jeremy Walker told KFVS-TV that residents can carry concealed guns in public.
“Responsible, law-abiding citizens will finally be able to exercise their constitutional right to carry concealed weapons in Randolph County,” a statement from his office reads, according to the station
The move comes as Gov. Pat Quinn looks at whether it is possible to lift a ban on carrying concealed weapons across the state, reported The Associated Press.
Quinn and state lawmakers had until June 9 to allow for residents to carry concealed weapons.
After the deadline passed, Walker said that “accordingly, I feel it is time to act.”
Several days ago, Madison County’s top prosecutor, Tom Gibbons, told AP that he would allow residents to carry concealed weapons.
“As this process dragged on in Springfield, with all sides working very hard on it, we had to do something,” he told the news agency last week. He added that the measure “serves no purpose.”
The move has drawn criticism from other lawmakers.
“We are a nation of laws, and we should follow the law and not pick and choose which ones we’re going to follow,” Chuck Garnati, with Illinois’ Williamson County, told AP. “I commend the Legislature for passing the conceal law and sending it to Gov. Quinn. But until he signs it, it’s not the law in Illinois. That’s the bottom line.”
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