I have a job opportunity in Chicago - Cook County to be specific. Now I know only the street thugs and criminals are allowed to arm themselves in Cook County. Not that I won't bring my USP45C...better to be judged by twelve than carried by six.

My question is...

What about Wheaton, IL? My roomate's family lives there and I was thinking of moving my handgun/rifle collection there. Is it legal to have an AR15 there? More importantly, what about a Form 1 SBR weapon?

You guys know everything so if you can help me with this I would appreciate it. Shooting is one of my main hobbies and it is a key factor in my decision to accept the position. I have to drive an hour as it is to shoot long range in Atlanta so I don't mind the commute.

Thanks if you can help me with the info!

Alan

No SBR's in IL

I'm out in the sticks, so I can't help you with the Wheaton ordnances.

WIZZO

No SBR's in IL. Now in Crook County you can have your AR's. Just in the city of chicago you aren't allowed weapons. Just the criminals are carrying.

Are you planning on living in Chicago?  Even if that's where you're working, I would really suggest commuting from one of the collar counties if at all possible.

There are plenty of trains, so no matter what your schedule you could probably find something that works for you.  I commute all the way from McHenry county.  While it's not for many people (the train ride is an hour+ each way) it's nice to get out of the city and home to a semi-rural area.

Even Lake county (just north of Cook) is a step up from Chicago as far as gun laws.

Cook County and Chicago are not the same thing.  There are parts of Cook County that are not Chicago.

Chicago does not have a hand gun ban.  Chicago requires gun registration.  Chicago stopped registering hand guns after 1983 or sometime around there.  There are many people legally owning registered hand guns in Chicago.  The guns were registered before the 1983 date.  If you are in Cook County but outside of Chicago, you have no problem with hand guns.  Chicago has some type of assault weapons ban.  I am not sure of the details because I do not live there.

Cook County bans some rifles by name.  For example they ban the Colt AR15.  So if you don't have a Colt, you're ok.

Check the links at the top of the Illinois forum page and you will find a section with the Chicago laws.

Quoted: Chicago does not have a hand gun ban.  Chicago requires gun registration.  Chicago stopped registering hand guns after 1983 or sometime around there.  There are many people legally owning registered hand guns in Chicago.  The guns were registered before the 1983 date.

That's still a defacto ban for anyone who didn't live in the city before 1983 or folks who refused to pay the annual fee to register them. The intent of the law was to be a defacto ban, and it has worked very well to that effect. It is still wrong, and we should still be fighting mad about it for the sake of law abiding citizens that are stuck living there.

Sorry if it wasn't your intent - but the way you phrase it, it comes across as if you think there is nothing wrong with it at all - and there really is.  

This is a good place to start in re: firearms in Illinois:  www.isp.state.il.us/foid/firearms.cfm

In fact, pursuant to law, they are required to publish all the local ordinances of municipalities that are more restrictive than the statewide laws: www.isp.state.il.us/foid/ordinances.cfm

Wheaton is one of those that has it's own ordinance re: firearms:  www.isp.state.il.us/docs/ordinances/wheaton_.pdf . . . which doesn't appear to contain much restriction at all.

Chicago's on the other hand, www.isp.state.il.us/docs/ordinances/chicago.pdf,    is 39 pages long and . . . well, you guessed it.

Plus, if you are moving to Illinois, you'll have to get a FOID, which is an ID card.  You can get all that info off the Illinois State Police site with the first link above.

Regarding Chicago's handgun "ban", the thought had occurred to me to see if there was any market for people who had registered guns prior to 1983 and were selling them, or if any of these "grandfathered" handguns were part of somebody's estate if they had passed on.

From my read of Chicago's ordinance, I am not sure if they would permit these "grandfathered" guns to be registered by new owners though.  

Ordinance 8-20-050 provides:
"No registration certificate shall be issued for any of the following types of firearms:  
(c) Handguns, except:
      (1) Those validly registered to a current owner in the City of Chicago prior to the effective date of this chapter, and which contain each of the following:
                   (i) [trigger lock], and
                   (ii) [load indicator]"

(emphasis added)

Now, the key word as it relates to the issue of purchasing from a "grandfathered" owner is "current".  
Does "current" mean "current at the time of the effective date of this chapter (1983)" or does "current" mean "now current" owner.  

The latter would preclude any "grandfathered" handgun from being registerable by anyone other than the person who originally registered it before 1983.  What do you guys think?

Sorry if it wasn't your intent - but the way you phrase it, it comes across as if you think there is nothing wrong with it at all - and there really is.

I don't think there is anything right with the Chicago ordinance.  I am tired of hearing the law stated incorrectly.  There are a ton of hand gun collections in the city.  Yes, new residents are banned from registering hand guns.  I am also tired of hearing Chicago=Cook County.

I have no idea how you could take my post as being in favor of the Chicago ordinance.

Quoted: The latter would preclude any "grandfathered" handgun from being registerable by anyone other than the person who originally registered it before 1983.  What do you guys think?

Yes.

The only people that legally own handguns in Chicago are people that owned them before the ban, and have sucessfully re-registered every year since.

How many people in Chicago own handguns legally now, like 6? That might as well be a ban.  

USC45
I'm glad you made it here. It looks like they bounced your thread from HK Pro.

Don't presume we know everything but you will get a lot of facts here. What Ladygunner said about the defacto ban is the fact jack. NFA items are only for MFR SOTs.

If you move to Chicago proper you are going to have some hard choices to make. Lots of folks think very hard about those consequences.

The upside is you will be in Chicago and that’s not half bad.

JR

You're good to go if you can keep your handguns in Wheaton. Double check the Chicago ordinances to be sure, but I seem to recall you can have a rifle or shotgun in the City. Unk. if you have to "register" them. Like you said... 12/6

Be warned, the ISP website does not have info on the Cook County AWB, despite it being in violation of the law. Basically, the Cook County ban states no AK's of any sort, no Colt AR's, no HK's nor clones, no FNC's, no AUG's, no FAL's, no Sig 550 series, no Uzi's, no Auto Ordinance Thompsons, no Mini 14/5F's, nor a couple of weird ones that I have never heard of.

However, the Cook County ordinance only really applies to unincorporated areas, and towns that include it in their statues like Oak Park. If your town has a gun shop in then you are probably okay.

Wheaton does not have any ordinances that prohibit ownership of firearms with the city. As far as ranges I would look at the Aurora Sportsman's club, Sycamore, or make the occasional run to Buffalo. Contact any of the members here if you need more info