Full Text of SR0223 98th General Assembly
SR0223 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, In 2012 the City of Chicago experienced over 500 | 3 | | homicides, 87% of which were gun related; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, Recent news articles have highlighted that many of | 5 | | those prosecuted for firearms offenses in the City of Chicago | 6 | | and Cook County are receiving minimal or inconsistent | 7 | | punishment under Illinois law; and
| 8 | | WHEREAS, Under federal law a convicted felon in possession | 9 | | of a firearm or ammunition is eligible for a sentence of up to | 10 | | 10 years in federal prison; and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, Federal weapons prosecutions peaked at 11,015 in | 12 | | 2004 under President George W. Bush; last year the number had | 13 | | dwindled to 7,774 prosecutions; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, The Northern District of Illinois, which includes | 15 | | the City of Chicago, has one of the lowest federal district | 16 | | court prosecutions of gun-related violence despite a major | 17 | | surge in violent crime using a weapon; and
| 18 | | WHEREAS, Despite the alarming number of gun-related | 19 | | murders in the City of Chicago last year, the number of federal | 20 | | prosecutions of gun crimes in U.S. District Court in Chicago |
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| 1 | | actually dropped from 129 in 1999 to 73 in 2011 and to just 40 | 2 | | last year; and
| 3 | | WHEREAS, Increasing the number of federal prosecutions for | 4 | | firearms offenses will help keep violent and repeat offenders | 5 | | off the street longer; and | 6 | | WHEREAS, Increasing the number of federal prosecutions for | 7 | | firearms offenses will free up local criminal justice resources | 8 | | for other criminal prosecutions; and | 9 | | WHEREAS, Increasing the number of federal prosecutions for | 10 | | firearms offenses is an effective way to fight violence in the | 11 | | community; therefore, be it | 12 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL | 13 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that a comprehensive State | 14 | | and federal approach is necessary to curb firearms violence and | 15 | | ensure that our communities are safe from increasing gang | 16 | | violence; and be it further
| 17 | | RESOLVED, That we urge the President of the United States, | 18 | | the Attorney General of the United States, the Mayor of | 19 | | Chicago, the Chicago Police Superintendent, the Cook County | 20 | | Sheriff, and the Cook County State's Attorney to work together | 21 | | so that all firearms offenses that are eligible for federal |
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| 1 | | prosecution be referred to the federal government for | 2 | | prosecution under existing federal law.
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