Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Proposed Winnebago County Countywide Permits for Concealed Handguns
Countywide permits for concealed handguns; application procedures; definitions
A. (1) notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the Sheriff of Winnebago County shall issue a concealed handgun permit to any citizen who qualifies for a permit under the provisions of this Section. The permit shall contain a permit number, expiration date, photograph, and the name, address, and date of birth of the permittee.
(2)(a) The name, address, and birth date of each person to whom a permit is issued shall be public record. (b) The fact that a person has applied for a permit or has obtained a permit pursuant to this Section, and any information submitted in any application for a concealed handgun permit, shall not be a public record. However, nothing contained herein shall limit or impede the free flow of information between law enforcement agencies, prohibit the department from releasing information necessary to perform the background investigation, or provide statistical information which does not identify individual applicants or permittees.
A concealed handgun permit issued pursuant to this Section shall grant authority to a citizen to carry a concealed handgun on his person.
To qualify for a concealed handgun permit, a citizen shall:
Make sworn application to the Winnebago County Sheriff. The providing of false or misleading information on the application or any documents submitted with the application shall be grounds for the denial or revocation of a concealed handgun permit. The application shall reflect training in pistols, revolvers, or both. Any permittee under this Section shall notify the department of any address or name change within thirty days of the change. Failure to timely notify the department of a name or address change may result in suspension of the permit for up to thirty days.
Agree in writing to hold harmless and indemnify the department, the state, or any peace officer for any and all liability arising out of the issuance or use of the concealed handgun permit.
Be a resident of the county and have been a resident for six months or longer immediately preceding the filing of the application.
Be twenty-one years of age or older.
Not suffer from a mental or physical infirmity due to disease, illness, or retardation which prevents the safe handling of a handgun.
Not be ineligible to possess a firearm by virtue of having been convicted of a felony.
Not have been committed, either voluntarily or involuntarily, for the abuse of a controlled dangerous substance, or been found guilty of, or entered a plea of guilty to a misdemeanor under the laws of this state or similar laws of any other state relating to a controlled dangerous substance within a five year period immediately preceding the date on which the application is submitted, or be presently charged under indictment or a bill of information for such an offense.
Not chronically and habitually use alcoholic beverages to the extent that his normal faculties are impaired. It shall be presumed that an applicant or permittee chronically and habitually uses alcoholic beverages to the extent that his normal faculties are impaired if the applicant has been found guilty of, or entered a plea of guilty or operating a vehicle while intoxicated, or has been admitted, either voluntarily or involuntarily, for treatment as an alcoholic, within the five-year period immediately preceding the date on which the application is submitted, or at any time after the application has been submitted.
Not have entered a plea of guilty or been found guilty of a crime of violence, at the misdemeanor level, unless five years have elapsed since completion of sentence or any other conditions set by the court have been fulfilled, or unless the conviction was set aside and the prosecution dismissed, prior to the date on which the application is submitted.
Not have been convicted of, have entered a plea of guilty or not be charged under indictment or a bill of information for any crime of violence or any crime punishable by imprisonment for a term of one year or greater. A conviction, plea of guilty, under this Paragraph shall include a dismissal and conviction set aside under the provisions of Code of Criminal Procedure Article 893.
Not be a fugitive from justice.
Not be an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana, depressants, stimulants, or narcotic drugs.
Not have been adjudicated to be mentally deficient or been committed to a mental institution.
Not be an illegal alien in the United States.
Not have been discharged from the Armed Forces of the United States with a discharge characterized as "Under Other than Honorable Conditions", a "Bad Conduct Discharge", or a "Dishonorable Discharge". In the case of Commissioned Officers and Warrant Officers of the United States Armed Forces, the punishment of "Dismissal" rendered subject to a verdict of "guilty" at a trial by military court-martial is deemed to be disqualifying under this Paragraph. For the purposes of this Paragraph, the United States Coast Guard is considered an armed force.
Not have a history of engaging in violent behavior. There shall be a rebuttable presumption that an applicant has a history of engaging in violent behavior upon proof that, within a ten-year period immediately preceding the date of the application, the applicant has been arrested or charged on three or more occasions for any crime of violence or has been arrested or charged on two or more occasions for any crime of violence that may be punished by death.
Not be ineligible to possess a firearm under 18 USC 922(g).
D. (1) In addition to the requirements of Subsection C of this Section, an applicant shall demonstrate competence with a handgun by any one of the following:
(a) Completion of any National Rifle Association handguns safety or training course conducted by a National Rifle Association certified instructor.
(b) Completion of any Department of Public Safety and Corrections approved firearms safety or training course or class available to the general public offered by a law enforcement agency, college, or private or public institution or organization or firearms training school.
(c) Completion of any law enforcement firearms safety or training course or class approved offered for security guards, investigators, special deputies, or any division or subdivision of law enforcement or security enforcement.
(d) Possession of a current valid license to carry a concealed weapon issued by a law enforcement officer.
(e) Completion of any firearms training or safety course or class approved by the Winnebago County Sheriff.
(f) Completion of a law enforcement training academy program.
(g) Completion of small arms training while serving with the Armed Forces of the United States of America as evidenced by any of the following:
For personnel released or retired from active duty, possession of an "Honorable Discharge" or "General Discharge Under Honorable Conditions" as evidenced by a Department of Defense Form 214 (DD-214).
For personnel on active duty or serving in one of the National Guard or reserve components of the Armed Forces, possession of certification of completion of basic training with service record evidence of having successfully completed small arms training and qualification.
(h) The National Rifle Association's personal protection course.
(2) Instructors for any class, training, or course of instruction authorized by this Subsection, except for small arms training in military service as provided in Subparagraph (1) (g) of this Subsection, shall be certified as an instructor by the National Rifle Association as an instructor for civilians or law enforcement or by the Council on Peace Officer Standards and Training as a firearms instructor. Any safety or training course or class as described in this Subsection, except for basic handgun training in military service provided in Subparagraph (1)(g) of this Subsection, shall include instruction in child access prevention.
E. (1) A photocopy of a certificate of completion of any of the courses or classes, or an affidavit from the instructor, school, club, organization, or group that conducted or taught said course or class attesting to the completion of the course or class by the applicant, or a copy of any document which shows completion of the course or class or confirms participation in firearms competition or honorable discharge shall constitute evidence of qualification pursuant to Subsection D of this Section.
(2) It shall be illegal to intentionally present false, fraudulent, altered, or counterfeit documents to prove training in handguns in order to obtain a concealed handgun permit. Whoever intentionally presents false, fraudulent, altered, or counterfeit documents to prove training in handguns in order to obtain a concealed handgun permit shall be fined not more than one thousand dollars or imprisoned for not more than six months, or both. In addition, no person convicted of a violation of this Subsection shall be eligible to obtain a permit.
F.(1) The Sheriff shall revoke the permit if at any time during the permit period the permittee fails to satisfy any one of the qualification requirements provided for in Subsection C of this Section.
G. Neither the county nor the Sheriff shall be liable for acts committed by the permittee, unless the Sheriff or applicable permitting process employee had actual knowledge at the time the permit was issued that the permittee was disqualified by law from carrying a concealed handgun.
H.(1) The Sheriff shall, within two working days of the initial application, notify the chief of police of the municipality and the chief law enforcement officer of the village in which the applicant is domiciled of such application. Those officers shall have ten days to forward to the Sheriff any information relating to the applicant's legal qualification to receive a permit.
(2) The Sheriff shall issue timely and without delay the concealed handgun permit to all qualified applicants, which permit shall be and which shall be valid in all township countywide. The division shall promulgate rules for the purpose of providing for permits and fees for fewer than four years to the applicants requesting a shorter time period. Fees shall be reduced proportionately for terms of fewer than four years. The permit shall be retained by the permittee who shall immediately produce it upon the request of any law enforcement officer.
(3.) Anyone who violates the provisions of this Subsection shall be fined not more than one hundred dollars.
I. (1) No individual to whom a concealed handgun permit is issued may carry and conceal such handgun while under the influence of alcohol or a controlled dangerous substance. While a permittee is under the influence of alcohol or a controlled dangerous substance, an otherwise lawful permit is considered automatically suspended and is not valid. A permittee shall be considered under the influence as evidenced by a blood alcohol reading of .05 percent or greater by weight of alcohol in the blood, or when a blood test or urine test shows any confirmed presence of a controlled dangerous substance.
A permittee armed with a handgun in accordance with this Section shall notify any police officer who approaches the permittee in an official manner or with an identified official purpose that he has a weapon on his person, submit to a pat down, and allow the officer to temporarily disarm him. Whenever a law enforcement officer is made aware that an individual is carrying a concealed handgun and the law enforcement officer has reasonable grounds to believe that the individual is under the influence of either alcohol or a controlled dangerous substance, the law enforcement officer may take temporary possession of the handgun and request submission of the individual to a department certified chemical test for determination of the chemical status of the individual. Whenever a law enforcement officer is made aware that an individual is behaving in a criminally negligent manner as defined under the provisions of this Section, or is negligent in the carrying of a concealed handgun, the law enforcement officer may seize the handgun, until adjudication by a judge, if the individual is issued a summons or is arrested.
The permit to carry a concealed weapon shall be revoked by the Sheriff when the permittee is carrying and concealing a handgun under any of the following circumstances:
The blood alcohol reading of a permittee is .05 percent or greater by weight of alcohol in the blood.
A permittee's blood test or urine test shows the confirmed presence of a controlled dangerous substance.
A permittee refuses to submit to a department-certified chemical test when requested to do so by a law enforcement officer pursuant to Paragraph (2) of this Subsection.
An individual is found guilty of negligent carrying of a concealed handgun.
The person tested may have a physician or a qualified technician, chemist, registered nurse, or other qualified person of his own choosing administer a chemical test or tests in addition to any administered at the direction of a law enforcement officer, and he shall be given the opportunity to telephone and request the qualified person to administer such test.
Whenever a peace officer determines that grounds under this Subsection exist for the revocation of a concealed handgun permit, he shall prepare an affidavit, on a form provided by the Sheriff's Department indicating the reasons for the revocation and all other information regarding the revocation available to the officer. A copy of the peace officer's report relating to the incident shall be attached to the affidavit when submitted to the department.
J. For the purposes of this Section, the following terms shall have the meanings ascribed herein:
"Handgun" means a type of firearm commonly referred to as a pistol or revolver originally designed to be fired by the use of a single hand and which is designed to fire or is capable of firing fixed cartridge ammunition. The term "handgun" shall not include shotguns or rifles that have been altered by having their stocks or barrels cut or shortened.
"Criminal negligence" means there exists such disregard of the interest of others that the license holder's conduct amounts to a gross deviation below the standard of care expected to be maintained by a reasonably careful man under like circumstances.
"Resident" means a person who maintains a dwelling in this county and is physically present in this county at least fifty-one percent of each calendar year. However, a person who maintains a dwelling in this county but is not physically present in this state at least fifty-one percent of each calendar year is still considered to be a resident for purposes of this Section if he is on U.S. military duty in another state or is attending school in another state.
K. The Sheriff shall execute a thorough background investigation, including a criminal history check, of every applicant for the purpose of verifying the qualifications of the applicant pursuant to the requirements of this Section. For purposes of this Subsection, a background check shall be defined as a computer check of available on-line state records, and, if warranted, the fingerprints may be forwarded to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for a national criminal history record check.
L. Anyone who carries and conceals a handgun in violation of any provision of this Section, unless authorized to do so
by another provision of the law, shall be fined not more than five hundred dollars, or imprisoned for not more than six months, or both.
M. No concealed handgun permit shall be valid or entitle any permittee to carry a concealed weapon in any facility, building, location, zone, or area in which firearms are banned by state or federal law.
N. No concealed handgun may be carried into and no concealed handgun permit issued pursuant to this Section shall authorize or entitle a permittee to carry a concealed handgun in any of the following:
A law enforcement office, station, or building.
A detention facility, prison, or jail.
A courthouse or courtroom provided that a judge may carry such a weapon in his own courtroom.
A polling place.
A meeting place of the governing authority of a political subdivision.
The state capitol building.
(7) Any portion of an airport facility where the carrying of firearms is prohibited under federal law, except that no person shall be prohibited from
carrying any legal firearm into the terminal, if the firearm is encased for shipment, for the purpose of checking such firearm as lawful baggage.
(8) Any church, synagogue, mosque, or other similar place of worship.
(9) A parade or demonstration for which a permit is issued by a governmental entity.
(10) Any portion of an establishment that sell alcoholic beverages for consumption on the premises.
(11) Any school "firearm-free zone".
O. The provisions of Subsection N of this Section shall not limit the right of a property owner, lessee, or other lawful custodian to prohibit or restrict access of those persons possessing a concealed handgun pursuant to a permit issued under this Section. No individual to whom a concealed handgun permit is issued may carry such concealed handgun into the private residence of another without first receiving the consent of that person.
P. Within three months of June, 30 2008 the Sheriff shall promulgate rules and regulations in accordance with the Administrative Procedure to provide an appeal process in the event that an applicant is denied issuance of a permit. The Sheriff may also promulgate educational requirements for renewal of concealed handgun permits.
Q. The provisions of this Section shall not apply to sworn law enforcement officers.
R.( 1) Each permittee, within fifteen days of a misdemeanor or a felony arrest, other than a minor traffic violation, in this county, state of Illinois or any other state, shall notify the Sheriff by certified mail. The Sheriff may suspend, for up to ninety days, the permit of any permittee who fails to meet the notification requirements of this Section.
(2) The Sheriff shall submit a report by March thirty-first of each year to the Winnebago County Board. The report shall include information on the number of licenses issued, denied, revoked, or suspended and the reasons for such denial, revocation, or suspension to be categorized by age, sex, race, and zip code of the applicant or licensee. The report shall include data concerning any known accidents or deaths involving permittees.
S. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the Sheriff may develop, print, and distribute an informational newsletter relative to concealed handgun permittees, safety training, and related matters.
T.(1) Possession of a current and valid concealed handgun permit issued pursuant to this Section shall constitute sufficient evidence of the background check required pursuant to 18 USC 922(t). A current and valid concealed handgun permit issued by another state shall be deemed to be valid within this county. An out-of-state permit holder carrying a concealed handgun pursuant to this Paragraph is bound by the laws of this county regarding carrying a concealed handgun pursuant to a permit issued in accordance with this Section.
Labels: Gun Control, Winnebago County, Winnebago County Board
