Chicago approves new handgun restrictions
45-0 vote comes after Supreme Court hits city on gun ban


July 2, 2010

By ABDON M. PALLASCH Political Reporter

Chicago aldermen voted unanimously today to approve compromise gun restrictions they hope won’t run afoul of the U.S. Supreme Court majority’s new standards on gun bans.

The 45-0 vote, coming four days after the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling against the city’s handgun ban, puts in place strict limits on guns.


The new ordinance, which city officials called the strictest in the nation, allows adults in Chicago to buy one gun a month — 12 a year. But they must pay registration and permit fees and take five hours of training.

The measure prohibits gun shops in Chicago and bars gun owners from so much as stepping outside their homes with a handgun, even if it’s only onto their porches or garages.

The vote might have been unanimous, but it didn’t come without complaint. Aldermen railed against the five Supreme Court justices who ruled against the city, finding that Americans have a right to own a gun for self-defense anywhere they live.

“No Supreme Court judge could live in my community and come to the same conclusion they did,â€