McHenry Co. board backs opposing gun control

Launching itself into the midst of a national debate, the McHenry County Board on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved a symbolic resolution opposing any further gun-control measures by the Illinois legislature.

The resolution, passed by a 23-0 vote, states the board objects to "the enactment of any legislation that would infringe upon the right of the people to keep and bear arms" and says the county receives economic and recreational benefits from safe use of firearms.

The vote makes McHenry the 75th county in Illinois to endorse the resolution, the work of a downstate group called Illinois Pro Second Amendment Resolution. The group is enlisting local governments' support in hopes of blocking additional restrictions on gun ownership.

Its supporters said that while the measure cannot force state lawmakers to abandon gun-control legislation, it tells Springfield where many state residents stand on the issue.

"The state has been coming after law-abiding gun owners with all kinds of laws, some of them very restrictive," said Lee Luxow, president of the McHenry County Sportsman's Association. "It's designed to send a message that we're tired, as law-abiding citizens, that with a stroke of a legislative pen we're being branded as criminals."

The only debate Tuesday concerned not the content of the resolution but whether it is a county board's place to wade into a constitutional, and controversial, issue.

"Are we setting a bad precedent?" asked board member Peter Merkel. "Think of some of the national issues out there and think of all the groups that are going to want your support."

Proponents said that because of the benefits the county derives from hunting and other gun-related sporting activities, it is appropriate for the board to act on the resolution.

"For someone in Springfield or Chicago to try to derail a part of our economy is something we should stand up and take note of," board member Nick Provenzano said.

"This is about the only way to tell our legislators how we feel," added board member Tina Hill.

The board initially planned to vote on the resolution Feb. 19, but board Chairman Ken Koehler pulled it from that night's agenda in the wake of the shootings at Northern Illinois University five days earlier that left six dead and 16 others injured.