Prairie State Wire

A spokesman for the political action committee People Who Play By the Rules (PBR) is criticizing Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker for advocating more gun control after the July Fourth mass shooting in Highland Park.

“Morally relativistic politicians like J.B. Pritzker don’t want to have the uncomfortable discussions about parenting, drug use, the lasting effects of extreme lockdowns on our youth, and sociopathic mental illness, so they jump right to the simple-minded and tired go-to of more ‘gun control,’ which always amounts taking rights away from law-abiding Illinoisans," PBR spokesman Mike Koolidge told the Prairie State Wire recently. "It’s shameful and sanctimonious and does nothing to solve the issue.”

Pritzker and Mayor Nancy Rotering of Highland Park both called for more 'gun control' one week after the mass shooting while in Washington D.C. at the White House, a Fox 32 Chicago news report said. Rotering stated that Highland Park had "banned assault weapons nine years ago"; and Pritzker followed, saying, "These are combat weapons. These are weapons of war. They should not be on the streets."

Highland Park police were called to the Crimo residence at least nine times between 2010 and 2014, the Chicago Tribune said newly released police records showed. Most incidents involved verbal and physical altercations between the parents of Robert Crimo III, the alleged Independence Day gunman.     

During an altercation in August of 2010, it was reported that Denise Pesina had struck her husband Robert Crimo Jr. in the head with a shoe while she was intoxicated, the Tribune said. Pesina told law enforcement that Crimo Jr. had made negative remarks about her appearance that led her to drink.

A Highland Park police report stated that on Sept. 5, 2019, officers responded to a well-being check after Robert Crimo III had made a threat to kill everyone in the house, the New York Post reported. Crimo III told the officers that he was depressed and had a history of drug use. The officers found a collection of 16 knives in Crimo’s bedroom, including a 12-inch dagger and a 24-inch Samurai-type blade. Following this incident, a “Clear and Present Danger” form was filled out.     

Crimo Jr., a one-time mayoral candidate, sponsored his son’s Firearms Owners Identification FOID application after he was deemed a “clear and present  danger," the Post said.

Crimo III is presently charged with seven counts of first-degree murder, the Tribune reported.

Research by Manhattan Institute fellow Charles Fain Lehman showed that 19 states, including Illinois and the District of Columbia, currently have some form of a “Red Flag Law,” also called “Gun Violence Restraining Orders” or “Extreme Risk Protection Orders,” a recent report by The Dispatch said. The laws allow judges to temporarily seize guns from individuals alleged to pose a threat to others or themselves.