itsawaldo wrote:SPRINGFIELD -- The names of people authorized to own guns in Illinois is public information that the state must disclose, according to a ruling from the office of Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan.
The Illinois State Police determines who gets Firearm Owners Identification cards but has always kept the information confidential.
Madigan's public access counselor issued a letter Monday night rejecting state police arguments that releasing the information is an unwarranted invasion of privacy prohibited by the state public-records law or that its disclosure would automatically endanger the lives of gun owners or those who don't have firearms.
Despite the decree, the names likely won't be uncloaked soon. A state police lawyer indicated earlier the agency planned to take to court a contrary ruling from Madigan's office. And Republican lawmakers have filed legislation to make names permanently private.
So, in order to legally own a gun in Illinois, do you have to have one of the Identification Cards? Living out in the free wild west, I often forget that there are such crazy laws out there.