Lake County leads state in firearm restraining orders; ‘One of the many tools … to make people safer'
Lake County officials Thursday touted their status as a statewide leader in using restraining orders to temporarily remove firearms from people who pose a danger to themselves or others.
At a media briefing at the Lake County Courthouse, leaders including State's Attorney Eric Rinehart and Illinois State Police Director Brendan Kelly said the county led Illinois in the number of Firearm Restraining Orders filed per 100,000 residents for 2023 and 2024.
An FRO is a civil order issued by a judge that temporarily limits a person's access to guns and related items when law enforcement believes that person poses a threat to themselves or others.
Lake County judges granted 46 FROs last year, and local filings have increased by 23 times from 2021, according to local prosecutors.
'These numbers show that we are doing the work in Lake County … to make sure we have a healthy and safe place for everyone here,' Rinehart said. 'The Firearm Restraining Order is one of the many tools that we are all using to make people safer.'
Requests for FROs are usually made by local law enforcement officials, who present their case to a judge who then decides whether to grant the order. The orders can be lifted when the person in question shows they are no longer a threat, he said.
Rinehart said the county has seen a decrease in the last two years in both firearm-related suicides and homicides, and he believes FROs played a role in the reductions.
The Illinois State Police director said the numbers indicate that Lake County is taking the FRO program seriously and is committed to reducing gun violence.
'In every single one of these cases, behind these numbers is an example of something terrible that could have happened, but didn't because a Firearm Restraining Order was filed and action was taken to be able to prevent those things,' Kelly said.
Local prosecutors along with the Illinois Attorney General's Office and the ISP regularly lead law enforcement training sessions to acquaint police with the FRO process.
Sheriff John Idleburg said his office recently obtained an FRO after a student threatened classmates, including making a video call while holding a shotgun. Officers obtained an FRO to seize the gun, he said.
The State's Attorney's Office, along with the Attorney General's Office and the ISP, has expanded training to schools, domestic violence and mental health groups, to raise awareness of the FRO process. Rinehart said there are people within his office, social service agencies and throughout the criminal justice system who act as 'navigators' to help shepherd the restraining orders through the system.
Kelly said Lake County's successful model can be adopted statewide.
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Black America Web
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Yahoo
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