Month: May 2023

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court declined to block a new law in Illinois that bans assault-style weapons such as the AR-15 semiautomatic rifle, which has been used in multiple mass shootings. The decision means the Illinois law enacted in the wake of the 4th of July shooting in the city of Highland Park last year that killed seven will remain in effect while the case continues.

A federal judge blocked the law in a separate case, but the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals put that decision on hold. The appeals court also expedited consideration of five different cases challenging the new law.  A local gun ordinance in Naperville, Illinois, that bars assault-style weapons will also remain in effect as a result of the Supreme Court action.  Enacted in January, the state law bans what the state defines as “assault weapons,” including the AR-15 rifle, as well as large capacity magazines that hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition for a long gun or more than 15 rounds of ammunition for handguns. The law does not ban any handguns and it does not affect people who already own the firearms covered by the ban.

A spokeswoman for Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul said “communities in Illinois will continue to benefit from this important public safety measure” as litigation moves forward. Illinois is one of 10 states that has a ban on what gun control advocates call assault weapons, several of which have been enacted in the last year.

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A grand jury has indicted Bryan Kohberger, the 28-year-old suspect in the stabbing murders of four Idaho college students in November 2022. The Latah County district clerk and an Idaho Supreme Court spokesperson confirmed a multicount indictment against Kohberger; later, a spokesperson for the State of Idaho Judicial Branch confirmed that Kohberger faces four counts of first-degree murder and felony burglary for his alleged involvement in the killings.

The indictment allows prosecutors to bypass a week-long preliminary hearing that was scheduled to start on June 26. Prosecutors originally set the preliminary hearing for Kohberger after his arrest in December on four counts of first-degree murder and burglary; however, prosecutors later opted to impanel a grand jury, bypassing a hearing that could have publicly revealed their evidence against Kohberger.

Kohberger was arrested at his parents’ home in Albrightsville, Pennsylvania six weeks after the stabbing deaths of Madison Mogen and her friend Kaylee Goncalves, both 21, and Xana Kernodle and her boyfriend Ethan Chapin, both 20, at their King Road residence. He was extradited to Idaho and is currently being held in the Latah County Jail without bond, according to jail records. Kohberger has yet to enter a plea and he is waiting to learn whether prosecutors in the high-profile case will pursue the death penalty.

The Idaho court spokesperson said that a district court arraignment hearing for Kohberger is set for Monday morning.

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