Ban On Carrying Concealed Guns On CTA, Metra Ruled Unconstitutional

ROCKFORD, IL — A federal judge ruled the Illinois law banning concealed carry permitholders from carrying their guns on public transportation is unconstitutional.

U.S. District Judge Iain Johnston issued a ruling Friday allowing four men from the Chicago suburbs to carry concealed firearms on buses and trains.

Benjamin Schoenthal, of DeKalb, and Mark Wroblewski, of Woodridge, are both permitted to bring concealed guns on Metra trains and property as a result of Johnston's ruling, while Joseph Vesel, of La Grange, and Douglas Winston, of Waukegan, can bring their guns on Metra and the Chicago Transit Authority.

The judge found Attorney General Kwame Raoul, Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx and DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin "failed to meet their burden to show an American tradition of firearm regulation at the time of the Founding that would allow Illinois to prohibit [Schoenthal, Wroblewski, Vesel and Winston]—who hold concealed-carry permits—from carrying concealed handguns for self-defense onto the CTA and Metra."

Johnston relied on the 2022 Supreme Court ruling in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, which struck down that state's law requiring people to show “proper cause” to get a gun and established a new constitutional test — the requirement that gun laws are consistent with regulations in place at the time the Second Amendment was written.

The Rockford-based judge rejected the argument from attorneys for the state that previous laws regulating firearms on railroads were relevant, since they are private entities.

"The task before this Court is to decipher whether public transit can be analogous to schools or government buildings (including legislative assemblies, polling places, and courthouses), or to some other sensitive place if [state officials] are able to identify one," Johnston wrote.

When determining if public transit should be considered a "sensitive place" — somewhere the Supreme Court, under the 2008 District of Columbia v. Heller ruling, considers gun regulations constitutional — the judge was unconvinced by the state's theories.

"[Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx's' argument—which is breathtaking, jawdropping, and eyepopping — is this: the ban applies only to property 'funded in whole or in part' by Illinois, so Illinois has a proprietary interest in what it regulates. Because governments, like private property owners, enjoy 'an absolute right to exclude others' from their property, Illinois may exclude whomever it wishes," the judge said.

"Ms. Foxx’s position — that government’s powers over public property are equivalent to those of private owners of property — is untenable, and was rejected by the Supreme Court long ago."

A spokesperson for Attorney General Kwame Raoul indicated that his office would likely appeal the ruling to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker said "many of the conservative judges who've been appointed have misunderstood what it means to uphold public safety."

Speaking to reporters Tuesday in Skokie, Pritzker noted there were clearly some clearly constitutional restrictions to weapons ownership, like bans on rocket-powered grenades or bringing an AR-15 into the White House.

The 2013 Firearm Concealed Carry Act law bans concealed carry licenseholders from bringing firearms onto "any bus, train, or form of transportation paid for in whole or in part with public funds, and any building, real property, and parking area under the control of a public transportation facility paid for in whole or in part with public funds."

Johnston's ruling was released just days before a man without a concealed carry license allegedly fatally shot four people as they slept on a CTA train in Forest Park.

The Illinois State Rifle Association released a statement referencing the slayings, describing them as an example of the danger that every rider of the CTA faces on a daily basis.

"Chicago Transit Authority trains and facilities remain a target rich environment for dangerous criminals who freely roam CTA properties as they terrorize innocent victims," it said.

"It’s also sad that CTA President Dorval Carter spends more time traveling around the world and flying on a plane, than visiting Chicago transit stations and ensuring that his customers get to their destinations safely and without incidents," it added, referencing recent reporting about the CTA boss's travels.

The latest case, known as Schoenthal v. Raoul, is part of a broader wave of legal challenges to Illinois gun laws, including ongoing litigation over the state’s assault weapons ban, which was passed as part of the Protect Illinois Communities Act in the wake of the 2022 Highland Park mass shooting and has, so far, been allowed to stand by the Supreme Court.

The governor said he was hopeful that the 2013 Illinois law, which he said had done a lot to keep people safe, is upheld on appeal.

"it’s clear that there are some misguided decisions that get made at the Circuit Court level, the federal court level and I’m hoping that it will be overturned along the way, if it has to all the way the Supreme Court," he said. "It will be disappointing if they uphold this."

There are more than 400,000 Illinoisans with concealed carry licenses, or CCLs, but Johnston's order only applies to four of them.

In his ruling, the judge predicted news coverage of his ruling in one of its footnotes.

"'Trump-appointed judge allows firearms on Illinois public transit' is a likely chyron for this decision. That’s unfortunate. Federal judges — including those who will review this decision — engage in exacting, thoughtful, and careful analyses that are not results oriented or reducible to headlines and chyrons," he said. "We’re doing the best we can."

Earlier: U.S. Supreme Court Declines To Intervene In Challenge To Illinois Assault Weapons Ban