Naperville Council Bans Sale Of Certain Assault Weapons With Ordinance

NAPERVILLE, IL — The sale of certain high-powered assault weapons will be prohibited in Naperville starting in January after the city council overwhelmingly approved a new ordinance banning the sales.

The council approved the new ordinance in an 8-1 vote that took place early Wednesday morning and that followed four hours of public comment on the issue. Councilman Paul Hinterlong was the lone vote against the ordinance, which will ban the sale of semi-automatic and assault rifles within the city limits with certain exceptions.

Law enforcement officers, including at the local, state, and federal levels as well as military members – including National Guard members – will be permitted to purchase the weapons according to the ordinance. The council first brought the issue to the table in the wake of the July 4 mass shooting in Highland Park that killed seven people and injured dozens more.

The final vote on the ordinance took place just before 1:30 a.m. after more than 100 people from both sides of the issue had spoken.

Hinterlong said in the meeting that he preferred the passage of a resolution rather than an ordinance that he feels could lead to possible lawsuits that challenge the legality of the ordinance, the Daily Herald reported. The sale of high-capacity magazines will also be banned under the new ordinance.

“We agree that this is going to do nothing, but we're going to stick our neck out here for being sued and have the possibility of losing and probably costing a couple million dollars in lawyers' fees when we lose," Hinterlong said, according to the newspaper. "What is the sense in that?"

While Naperville Mayor Steve Chirico told the council and meeting attendees that there are several ways to address gun violence, he said that based on events that have taken place across the country, including last month in Highland Park, something had to be done on a local level.

“I think access to these types of weapons for certain individuals is one of those things for me,” Chirico said at Tuesday's meeting.

“Clearly what’s happening in our country right now is not acceptable … and so we’ve got to take some action. We’ve got to do something to try to take some steps toward curtailing,” he said.

Many of those who spoke out against the ordinance at Tuesday night’s meeting expressed similar concerns over legal challenges. The passage of the ordinance is also expected to have serious impacts on two local businesses that sell weapons, including Range USA and Law Weapons and Supply.

Naperville City Attorney Michael DiSanto said Tuesday night that the same law firm that represented the cities of Highland Park and Deerfield when assault weapon bans were passed has agreed to represent Naperville free of change should legal challenges to the new ordinance arise.

The Daily Herald reported that the ordinance does not ban local residents from owning the assault weapons and does not prohibit private sales. In addition to the retailers who sell guns, other businesses – including pawn shops – are prohibited from selling the weapons and the magazines that go with them.

Those who violate the ordinance will face a fine of $1,000 and subsequent fines of $2,500.