SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WTVO) — Semi-automatic firearms purchased during the six days in which an injunction against the state’s “assault weapons” ban was in effect will be illegal to own come January 1st, 2024, according to the Illinois State Police.
In January, Gov. JB Pritzker signed a law that bans the sale of 170 semi-automatic weapons and creates a requirement for gun owners of the weapons to register with the state police.
A judge with the Southern District of Illinois issued an injunction against the state, preventing it from enforcing the ban while lawsuits challenging the law’s legality are underway.
Six days later, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the injunction, making the ban enforceable by the state.
During that time, gun stores saw high-volume sales.
Illinois State Police says those guns will be illegal because they were purchased after the effective date of the Protect Illinois Communities Act.
“Persons who possess a banned firearm or firearm attachment are required to endorse an affidavit by January 1, 2024, stating that any banned firearm or firearm attachments were possessed prior to the enactment of PICA (January 10, 2023) pursuant to 720 ILCS 5/24-1.9(d),” ISP told The Center Square.
The Protect Illinois Communities Act bans the future sale of about 170 different semi-automatic pistols, shotguns, and rifles because they are now considered assault weapons. Long-gun magazines with more than 10 rounds and handgun magazines with more than 15 rounds are also now illegal in Illinois.