Prairie State Wire

An Illinois law disallowing concealed carry permits for those under 21 may be in jeopardy after a similar law in Texas was struck down as unconstitutional. 

The Illinois State Rifle Association is seeking funds for litigation in Illinois to challenge the law. 

“Last week, a U.S. Federal District Judge in Fort Worth, Texas, struck down a Texas law that prevented qualified 18–20 year old’s from getting concealed carry permits," the ISRA said in a press release. Illinois has a similar law. "The judge rightly pointed out that the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments do not have an age prohibition included in them.  If this ruling is upheld, it will have far-reaching implications. Some courts have ruled that a person’s civil rights are fully vested at age 18.  This has not been tried before the Supreme Court of the United States yet, but it is going to get there at some point. Hawaii has brought their concealed carry regulations in line with the NYR&PA v Bruen ruling by the SCOTUS.  There are other states that will have to be forced into compliance.  It is too bad it has to be this way but the anti-gun crowd will not compromise in any way so we will have to fight inch by inch. This litigation is very expensive.  If you haven’t donated to the ISRA Legal Assistance Committee, P.O. Box 494, Chatsworth, IL 60921, please do so today.”

Illinois’ Firearm Concealed Carry Act limits concealed carry permits to those age 21 or older, according to ilga.gov.

U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman noted in his ruling that limiting such rights is a direct violation of the U.S. Constitution. 

“Based on the Second Amendment’s text, as informed by Founding-Era history and tradition, the Court concludes that the Second Amendment protects against this prohibition,” Pittman wrote in the ruling, The Texas Tribune reported.

Pittman is a judge for the United States District Court, Northern District of Texas. He was appointed to the bench in 2019 by President Trump. Prior to that, he was an appointee of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott as Justice of the Texas Second Court of Appeals. Pittman was born in 1975. He received his Juris doctorate from the University of Texas.