Following a longtime ban on concealed carry, Illinois residents are now allowed to legally carry concealed firearms, provided they have a valid permit to do so. (Photo credit: Chicago Tribune)
In what appears to be the first reported defensive gun use in Chicago by a legal concealed carry permit holder, a man scared off two armed suspects who approached him outside of his home early Saturday morning in what was believed to be an attempted robbery.
It was about 2:30 a.m. when the 57-year-old concealed carrier was walking from his garage to the front of his house and the two suspects came at him. One of the suspects then pulled a gun from his waistband, but the would-be victim also pulled out his own gun and fired three shots at the suspects, who immediately fled the scene, the Chicago Tribune reports.
The suspects were not believed to be hit and the shots did not result in any property damage.
Chicago Police Department News Affairs Officer Michael Sullivan confirmed that the man possessed a valid firearm owner’s identification card as well as a valid concealed carry permit, which required the man to have completed a concealed carry training class, among other requirements. Authorities also determined that the man acted in self-defense and will not face any charges.
If apprehended, the two suspects will face charges. However, the victim was not able to provide a detailed description of his assailants, only that one was a tall male and the other was a short male.
After a push from the federal courts this past summer Illinois became the last state to allow concealed carry. Lawmakers were engaged in an uphill battle to draft acceptable legislation from both sides of the great gun debate before the June 9 deadline given by the federal courts.
By February, nearly 34,000 concealed carry applications had been received across the state, despite what some say are rather stringent requirements, and by the end of the month the state had mailed out the first 5,000 permits.
Chief of communications with the Illinois State Police, Monique Bond stated back in January that legislators estimated between 300,000 to 400,000 Illinoisans would eventually become concealed carry permit holders, which would rank the state among the top ten for the country’s some 8 million permit holders.
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