Illinois ranks near bottom of states in use of 'red flag' gun laws
CHICAGO (CBS) -- In the days after the Highland Park parade massacre last year, a lot of attention was paid to Illinois' red flag law.
The law helps family members take guns out of the hands of those with violent tendencies. But of the 19 states with red flag laws, Illinois ranks at or near the bottom for usage of the law for each of the three years it has been in the books.
Why? CBS 2's Chris Tye sought to find out Tuesday.
In Highland Park, the question was given the suspect's history of threatening behavior and history with firearms, should a loved one have flagged him and had a judge decide if his weapons should be taken?
It did not happen in that case, and it happens so rarely in Illinois that it is leaving some experts scratching their heads as to what's going on.
"It's frustrating, because I know the potential," said Illinois state Rep. Denyse Wang Stoneback (D-Skokie).
Stobenack was among the state representatives who helped push through the red flag law – which is formally called the Firearm Restraining Order Act – in Springfield
The law temporarily removes firearms from family members displaying threatening or unsafe behavior - allowing a judge to suspend a Firearm Owners Identification card and remove guns for up to one year.
It works when those family members fill out petitions for firearms restraining orders with a county judge where the gun owner lives.
In a recent Johns Hopkins University study on policies to reduce gun violence in Illinois, their number one recommendation was to improve firearm restraining order implementation.
Here is part of why that is – in 2020 and 2021, Florida had 4,895 cases where petitions were filed to remove guns. In Illinois over the same period, the number was 105.
While Florida is 30 percent larger than Illinois by population, the disparity is striking.
"They certainly have taken ahold of it in the wake of their tragedy in Parkland, and really used it proactively to prevent tragedies," Stoneback said.
But Illinois has not seen the same, she said.
What Illinois will see is an infusion of cash from the feds to educate police, judges, and the public on how Red Flag laws can help prevent mass shootings, suicides, and domestic violence incidents before they take shape.
Such efforts have been under way in Florida one year longer than in Illinois.
"They're more familiar with their red flag law. They're more comfortable implementing and using it," Stoneback said. "There's a lot of hesitation here in amongst, I think, law enforcement and courts as well - and perhaps misunderstanding."
The numbers we compared to Florida, again, are from 2020 and 2021. CBS 2 got an early look at the numbers coming in for 2022 in Illinois - and despite the attention paid to red flag laws after the Highland Park shooting, it appears the number of firearms restraining orders in Illinois may have fallen last year - not risen.
The full report on the subject not yet complete, but when it is, we'll pass it along.
