(The Center Square) – Federal cases challenging local and state gun and magazine bans in Illinois are consolidated, and the stay against a preliminary injunction remains in place.
The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals Friday ordered four consolidated cases in the Southern District of Illinois challenging the state’s gun ban to be consolidated with cases from the Northern District challenging state and local bans.
The impacted cases from the Northern District of Illinois are Bevis v. Naperville and Herrera v. Raoul, which include Cook County and Chicago gun bans, and from the Southern District of Illinois, Barnett v. Raoul, which includes three other challenges from the Federal Firearms Licensees of Illinois, Illinois State Rifle Association and attorney Thomas Maag.
Briefs are scheduled throughout June, with oral arguments set for June 29 in Chicago.
“Motions to extend these dates, or to allow late filings by amici curiae, will not be entertained,” the appeals court said.
Late last month, the Southern District of Illinois issued a preliminary injunction against the state’s ban. Six days later, at the motion of the state as defendants, the appeals court issued a stay on the injunction.
“This court already has denied a motion for an injunction pending appeal in [Bevis v. Naperville],” the court said. “As for the Barnett appeals: based on our review of the parties’ submissions, the breadth of the litigation, and the differing conclusions reached by different district judges, we conclude that the stay of the district court’s order already entered will remain in effect until these appeals have been resolved and the court’s mandate has issued.”
Arguments next month will be in front of Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Frank Easterbrook, who issued the stay last week of the Southern District injunction, and Judges Diane Wood and Michael Brennan.
The Bevis case has a pending motion for an emergency injunction in front of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett. It’s unclear when a decision on that motion will be made.
Tuesday, the Illinois Supreme Court hears oral arguments in the state-level challenge of Illinois’ gun ban brought by state Rep. Dan Caulkins, R-Decatur.
