Federal judge throws out part of Chicago’s gun law

A federal judge on Tuesday threw out a section of Chicago’s gun law that bans people convicted of “unlawful use of a weapon” from obtaining permits, ruling it is too vaguely defined and could result in the ban being applied too broadly.

U.S. District Judge Samuel Der-Yeghiayan said the ordinance’s wording could be interpreted to mean different things in different jurisdictions.

“There is something incongruent about a nonviolent person, who is not a felon but who is convicted of a misdemeanor offense of simple possession of a firearm, being forever barred from exercising his constitutional right to defend himself in his own home in Chicago against felons or violent criminals,” Der-Yeghiayan said.

Chicago Law Department spokesman Roderick Drew says city officials are disappointed with the judge’s opinion and will advise police on how to proceed with enforcement of the law.

“We are in the process of reviewing it now so we can determine next steps,” Drew said.

The ruling is the result of a lawsuit filed by Shawn Gowder, who claimed his constitutional right to bear arms was violated when he was denied a firearm permit because of a misdemeanor conviction for possessing a gun on a public street. He filed the lawsuit after being denied a permit in 2010.

Gowder was convicted in Illinois in 1995 of unlawful use of a weapon. He wasn’t accused of discharging a weapon illegally, only with the possession of a firearm. At the time, that charge was a felony, but a challenge forced a change and Gowder’s violation was downgraded to a misdemeanor.

Chicago’s gun law was passed just days after a 2010 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court striking down the city’s 28-year ban on handguns. The ordinance requires gun owners to obtain a city gun permit and register their firearms with the police.