The Greater Peoria Mass Transit District is reexamining the rules prohibiting concealed weapons on public transportation after a recent court ruling found bans unconstitutional.
Last week, a federal judge in Rockford ruled a state law banning concealed carry on public transit like buses and trains unconstitutional. In his finding, U.S. District Court Judge Iain D. Johnston cited a 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned a New York law requiring people to have a “proper cause” for needing to carry a firearm in order to receive a concealed carry permit.
However, according to reporting from Capitol News Illinois, that ruling only applies to the four people who originally challenged the law.
Now, public transit organizations around the state are figuring out what Johnston's ruling means and how it applies to them.
The law in question is a portion of the 2013 Firearm Concealed Carry Act. It includes a list of places where carrying concealed weapons is still illegal, including: “any bus, train, or form of transportation paid for in whole or in part with public funds, and any building, real property, and parking area under the control of a public transportation facility paid for in whole or in part with public funds.”
The Greater Peoria Mass Transit District, or CityLink, provides public transportation for the region. A spokesperson says the organization is figuring out whether they can overturn the policy as well.
“According to Dr. John Myers, the General Manager of CityLink, the board members wish for the CityLink attorney to examine the possibility of overturning the policy that prohibits concealed weapons of any kind on public transportation buses and vans operated by CityLink,” said Director of Community Engagement & Public Relations ShamRA Robinson.
There is no information immediately available on how long that process could take.
Illinois was the last state in the U.S. to pass a concealed carry law.
A spokesperson for Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul told Capitol News Illinois they would likely appeal the ruling.
