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Republican State Lawmaker Offers Gun Control Measures

via State Representative David McSweeney website

An Illinois lawmaker wants to give police officers more power to take away guns from someone who poses a threat. 

 Listen to a summary of the story.

State Representative David McSweeney says police in Florida didn’t have enough power to stop Nikolas Cruz from carrying out a mass shooting, despite dozens of reports about his behavior. The Republican from Barrington Hills says his legislation would keep that from happening in Illinois. 

Police could get a warrant to take guns if a court decides the owner is dangerous to himself or others — or if they believe there’s an immediate danger, they could take the weapons and justify their actions in court later.

McSweeney believes that could help police prevent a mass shooting.

“I think it’s a reasonable way of addressing an issue that is obviously so important. I mean, there’s so many cases beyond Florida of people who are a clear and present danger,” he said.

Lawmakers are also considering a bill to let family members ask a court to take away someone’s guns, but McSweeney says that power should be reserved for the police.

Copyright 2018 NPR Illinois | 91.9 UIS

Sam is a Public Affairs Reporting intern for spring 2018, working out the NPR Illinois Statehouse bureau.